GATE: The Clone Wars
by Sir Ludwig
Summary: The Clone Wars had been raging on between the Republic and the CIS, but when a new enemy attacks the Republic from a mysterious gate. It will cause the Republic to send in their legendary Clone army to destroy this enemy. An enemy that will face a power unlike anything they will ever seen in the history of their world.
1. Chapter 1

" ** _Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means._** " - Ronald Reagan

* * *

 _In a galaxy far, far away..._

 ** _WAR!_**

 _During the early years of the conflict between the Grand Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, a war which was slowly coming to a dangerous climax. Many of the worlds that weren't aligned with either side was forced to due to threats, liberation, or just being caught in the middle of a battle_

 _It consumed the whole galaxy..._

 _However, before this war was a movement within the Republic that lead to the war happening._

 _The Separatist Crisis, also called the Secessionist Movement, was a period of political turmoil in which thousands of star systems seceded from the Galactic Republic and pledged loyalty to Count Dooku and the Confederacy of Independent Systems._

 _The political turmoil bred by the Separatist Crisis rocked the Republic, with Chancellor Palpatine publicly claiming that he hoped to find a diplomatic solution and avoid a war with the Separatist Alliance._

 _Many in the Confederacy, including members of the Separatist Senate, also did not wish to fight, as they simply wanted to be free of what they saw as the corruption of the Republic._

 _Though it was soon made apparent that peace wasn't an option._

 _After the attempted assassination of Padmé Amidala, the senator of Naboo and an influential member of the Republic's Loyalist Committee, the Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi began an investigation that led him to discover the clone army on Kamino, as well as a gathering of powerful business interests on Geonosis._

 _These business leaders, who would become known as the Separatist Council, committed their resources to Count Dooku's cause._ _These interests included the Trade Federation, which committed to producing countless battle droids for the Separatists._

 _The Crisis culminated in the Battle of Geonosis, when members of the Jedi Order arrived on Geonosis to rescue the captive Master Kenobi, Senator Amidala, and Padawan Anakin Skywalker from execution._

 _The clone troopers, commissioned as the Grand Army of the Republic through emergency executive power granted to the chancellor by the Galactic Senate, arrived under the command of Jedi Grand Master Yoda and fought the Separatist Droid Army._

 _The first battle of the Clone Wars occurred after a series of events forced the Jedi order to stretch their limited forces thin across the galaxy and initially began as an execution of then Jedi Padawan Anakin Skywalker, Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi and Senator Padme Amidala for the charge of espionage._

 _After a brief struggle in the Geonosis arena with a reek, nexu and acklay, a team of two hundred Jedi led by Mace Windu confronted Count Dooku, Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray, Archduke Poggle the Lesser and Bounty hunter Jango Fett who were watching the planned execution. Count Dooku was nevertheless undeterred, and called upon numerous B1 and B2 battle droids to assault the Jedi._

 _During the ensuing battle, Fett managed to kill a Jedi warrior threatening Dooku's life and engaged Mace Windu with his blaster pistols, but was grounded after his jetpack malfunctioned. Unable to escape, Fett was promptly killed by Mace Windu, much to the dismay of Dooku and of Fett's son, Boba Fett._

 _With superior numbers, the battle eventually turned in the favor of Dooku and his Separatist Droid Army, and after surrounding the remaining Jedi, Dooku offered to spare the survivor's lives in return for their surrender._

 _Mace Windu however, refused the offer._

 _About to be executed, the timely arrival of Jedi Master Yoda and the Grand Army of the Republic spared the lives of the remaining Jedi, engaging the droids in the arena with several LAAT/i gunships while larger Acclamator-lass assault ships loomed overhead._

 _After the successful extraction, the remaining Jedi were thrust into the now larger battle erupting outside of the Geonosis arena with thousands of clone troopers and battle droids from the recently formed Confederacy of Independent Systems assaulting one another. With the outcome of the battle now appearing grim for the Confederacy, numerous Separatist leaders such as Gunray and Rune Haako escaped Geonosis in numerous starships, while Poggle the Lesser entrusted the plans for the unfinished super-weapon; the Death Star to Count Dooku._

 _But before Dooku could make his escape however, Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi confronted him in a Geonosian hangar, where a brief and vicious conflict erupted. Despite Kenobi's advice, Anakin Skywalker impulsively attacked the Count causing him to be thrown aside by Force lightning. Dooku eventually managed to injure Obi-Wan and cut off Anakin's arm, however the arrival of Yoda forced the Count to hasten his escape._

 _Using the force to collapse a large pillar over the bodies of Anakin and Obi-Wan as a distraction, Dooku managed to win the valuable time needed to escape on his solar sailer as Yoda diverted the pillar with the Force._

 _Not long after the encounter, Count Dooku under the Sith title of Darth Tyranus traveled to the Works on Coruscant to meet with his Master, Darth Sidious, who reassured the Count that the war between the CIS and Republic was proceeding as planned._

 _In the Jedi Temple, Yoda, Windu and others pondered Dooku's warning that the Sith controlled the Senate, in which Yoda was hesitant to believe, reminding the Council that the dark side was capable of breeding fear and mistrust._

 _At the same time, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine and Onaconda Farr oversaw the deployment of thousands of clone troopers onto Acclamator-class assault ships._

 _The Clone Wars had truly begun._

 _Although the Battle of Geonosis was a victory for the Republic, the prospect of a war between the Republic and the Confederacy was now inevitable. Millions of clone trooper units departed from Coruscant on missions to find and defeat the Confederacy._

 _The clones were led in these missions by the Jedi knights, the first time that the Jedi Order had taken up arms en masse since the Seventh battle of Ruusan a thousand years prior. Despite the scale of the opening battle of Geonosis, however, neither side yet had the resources or the strategy to fight a major galactic war._

 _The Republic in particular was bedeviled by the fact that at this early stage the Grand Army of the Republic, numbered only 3 million troops in the beginning._

 _Though it launched a few coordinated attacks in the first year of the war that were usually successful, for example, at Muunilinst and Dac, the Republic's war was typically a defensive one, with most offensive operations being small-scale raids. The few pockets of Separatist space in the Core, for example, Cato Neimoidia, Scipio, Castell, and Foerost, were blockaded._

 _Until it could build up its armed forces to overwhelm the Confederacy, the Republic was vulnerable to the Confederacy's stateless strategy._

 _The Separatists pursued a defensive strategy for the first few months of the war, seeking to blunt Republic drives into their dispersed territories. Its first offensive moves were combinations of surgical strikes and terror operations, a stateless strategy designed to deny the Republic key invasion corridors, undermine support for the war, and sever key fleets' supply lines._

 _Dooku rapidly moved to secure key hyperspace nodes to ease the future deployment of the Separatist Droid Army, as well as for occupying whatever opportunistic pockets of space declared themselves._

 _The Confederacy quickly secured the hyperspace crossroads of Yag'Dhul on the Rimma Trade Route and the Corellian Trade Spine, as well as Sluis Van, solidifying their hold on the southern Rimma._

 _Soon began the Northern Campaign for the Republic._

 _Both sides made a handful of large offensives in the first year of the war._

 _In the Republic's case, the Muunilinst campaign, the Ninth Army's push north towards Agamar in an effort to break the Separatists' lines of communication from Muunilinst to the Outer Hydian, the Twelfth Army's early advance up the Perlemian from Lantillies to Centares, and the Eleventh Army's battle at Florrum to create a salient to separate the Separatist enclaves on the Outer Hydian and Perlemian. In the Separatists' case, the Hunt for the Decimator and the Dark Reaper Crisis._

 _However, the majority of operations consisted of small scale raiding._

 _The Republic raided to Pengalan IV to destroy a diamond boron missiles facility in the city of Tur Lorkin._

 _In the aftermath of the Battle of Christophsis, Jedi Master Aayla Secura and Clone Commander Bly captured an important Separatist T-series tactical droid on a planet. Secura and Bly were later ambushed over the planet Quell. The Battle of Quell began shortly afterwards, as Secura's ships were assaulted by rocket droids, Jedi Skywalker and his apprentice Ahsoka Tano, arrived and helped Bly and Aayla evacuate the decimated Republic Cruiser._

 _As part of the Eleventh Army's drive to separate the Confederate enclaves on the Perlemian and the Hydian, the Commerce Guild's planet Felucia was targeted._

 _High Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi General Anakin Skywalker, and Jedi Commander Ahsoka Tano were dispatched with a clone trooper detachment of the Grand Army of the Republic to take the planet._

 _The Jedi and their forces soon began to be overwhelmed by the Separatist battle droids, however, and Republic reinforcements were sent to extract the troops from the planet. While Republic Star Destroyers engaged the Separatist blockade surrounding Felucia, Jedi Master Plo Koon led several gunships and their starfighter escorts to rescue the Jedi and clone troopers on the surface._

 _After Skywalker, Kenobi, and their troops abandoned their AT-TE walkers to escape on the gunships, Kenobi contacted Tano, who had led a squad on a jungle patrol and had separately engaged the droid army. Though Tano initially refused to retreat, the gunships landed between her forces and the droids, forcing the Padawan and her squad to abandon their fight and escape._

 _Just as the gunships retreated, the AT-TE walkers and the Juggernaut tank that Tano had left behind were blasted apart by a large group of battle droid reinforcements._

 _The Republic retreated, leaving the Confederacy victorious on Felucia._

 _Techno Union Foreman Wat Tambor set out to conquer the planet Ryloth for the riches that rival Separatist Magistrate Passel Argente had secretly stowed there._

 _The Twi'leks on the world were subjected to a brutal droid occupation and were starved. While Jedi General Ima-Gun Di and Twi'lek resistance leader Cham Syndulla defended the planet from the Separatists, Senator Bail Organa and Representative Jar Jar Binks were able to gain permission from King Katuunko of the neutral Toydaria to use his world as a staging ground for supply ships that would deliver rations to the starving Twi'leks._

 _Though Di and his forces were ultimately defeated, Syndulla's resistance survived and used the Republic's delivered food and medical supplies to great effect._

 _Following its successful defense of Kamino, the Republic's Fourteenth Army launched an attack of its own to free occupied Ryloth._

 _Skywalker, Tano, and Yularen were sent with a Republic fleet to breach Separatist Captain Mar Tuuk's blockade of Ryloth so that Kenobi and Mace Windu could land with the main assault force. Although Tano's Blue Squadron was unable to break the blockade in their initial assault and was forced to retreat with the rest of the fleet, Skywalker used the damaged cruiser Defender to return to the Ryloth system and rammed it into Tuuk's flagship, forcing Tuuk to flee from the battlefield._

 _Tano and Yularen then entered the system with Skywalker's flagship, the Resolute, and cut through the droid defenses, allowing Kenobi and Windu to safely approach the planet._

 _However, the Republic invasion fleet was prevented from landing on Ryloth by a group of heavy proton cannons that had been stationed in the city of Nabat with T-series tactical droid commander TX-20. Once Kenobi, Commander Cody, and Ghost Company had infiltrated Nabat, taken out the cannons, and defeated TX-20 and his droid forces, Windu landed with the main body of troops and headed to retake the captured capital of Lessu._

 _In the aftermath of the Malevolence chase, General Grievous once again set his sights on Kamino, home to the Republic's vital cloning facilities._

 _In collaboration with Ventress as his agent on Kamino, Grievous advanced his invasion fleet through the Rishi system and sent a squad of BX-series droid commandos to secure the Republic base there and hot-wire its "all-clear" signal so that the Republic would not learn of his attack._

 _Although the droid commandos were able to do so, several clones - Hevy, Fives, Cutup, and Echo - were able to escape from the droid assault._

 _Though Cutup fell prey to a Rishi eel, Hevy, Fives, and Echo came under the command of Captain Rex and Commander Cody, who had stopped at Rishi Station during an inspection run of several of the Republic's listening posts and tracking stations._

 _The clones were able to retake the base, and though droid reinforcements sent by Grievous threatened to recapture the station, Hevy sacrificed himself to destroy the station, cutting off the base's "all-clear" signal and warning the Jedi of the impending assault. Skywalker, Kenobi, and Yularen promptly arrived and drove Grievous's forces out of the system, thwarting his attempt to invade Kamino._

 _In the aftermath of Dorin, the Republic launched a full-scale planetary invasion of Geonosis to shut down the droid factories._

 _The Second Battle of Geonosis proved to be a hard fight. Tasked with the challenge of landing on the planet and establishing a staging area, the Jedi mounted a three-pronged attack on the Geonosian defenses in what became known as the 'Battle of Point Rain', with Jedi Generals Ki-Adi-Mundi, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Anakin Skywalker each leading an assault force._

 _After establishing a landing zone at Point Rain, the Republic army regrouped and disabled the factories' ray shields, making way for the rest of the clone trooper forces to safely land. In order to eliminate the factory, Generals Skywalker and Luminara Unduli battled the facility's droid defenses in open warfare while their respective Padawans, Ahsoka Tano and Barriss Offee, sneaked into the facility via the catacombs beneath it._

 _Tano and Offee used a super tank to blow up the facility's reactor and collapse the factory from the inside. A hunt for Archduke Poggle the Lesser and the Geonosian Queen Karina the Great ensued in the aftermath of the battle._

 _The Jedi and their troops destroyed much of the queen's lair during their escape, killing Karina the Great and burying her warriors beneath the temple, and the Republic's recapture of Geonosis was secured._

 _Several months after the destruction of Rishi Station, Grievous and Ventress planned another assault on Kamino._

 _Skywalker and Kenobi caught wind of their plan when they had intercepted a coded message between Grievous and Ventress. They immediately rushed over to secure the clone planet. While Grievous arrived with a fleet to challenge the Republic's fortified blockade of Kamino, he secretly led Trident drills down to the surface by disguising them as debris from the space battle and having them crash into Kamino's oceans to join Ventress, who was already down there with her ship._

 _Once the assault craft were assembled, they rose out of the oceans and deployed their forces to attack Tipoca City._

 _While General Shaak Ti led the clone troopers to defend the city's Military Complex, Skywalker intercepted Ventress, who had stolen the clones' DNA template, while Kenobi dueled Grievous at the clone barracks. Both duels moved outside, and though Ventress and Grievous escaped, Skywalker managed to retrieve the DNA, and Ti was able to drive the droid forces away, thwarting the Separatists' invasion of Kamino and securing the key world._

 _At Coruscant, the Separatist fleet under Dooku and Grievous launched a week-long siege of the galactic capital. Confederacy C-9979 landing craft were unleashed on the capital along with swarms of Vulture droids and Droid tri-fighters. Hundreds of millions of battle droids and tank droids ravaged the streets of Galactic City, causing much damage to lives and property._

 _In response, the Republic deployed its Clone forces against the Separatist droid forces. As the battle raged in space, in the sky and on the ground, Grievous broke into 500 Republica and kidnapped Palpatine, slaying several troops and Jedi in the process. Realizing that they had been lured away from Coruscant, Skywalker and Kenobi made their way back to the capital world with the Open Circle Fleet to join in the attempt to rescue Palpatine._

 _Boarding the Separatist flagship Invisible Hand, they made their way through the ship to where the Chancellor was being held._

 _However, before they could escape they were met by Count Dooku, who once again faced off against the Jedi._

 _Although Dooku originally had the upper hand, the Jedi changed lightsaber styles during the middle of the battle in order to put the Sith Lord on the back foot. Dooku quickly swung the battle back in his favor by throwing Kenobi against the wall through the Force and knocking him unconscious. Dooku and Skywalker fought on, with both Dooku and Palpatine urging Skywalker to give in to the dark side._

 _This backfired on Dooku, as Skywalker gained the upper hand, disarmed his opponent._

 _On Palpatine's instructions, decapitated Dooku, destabilizing the Separatist leadership into the military faction led by General Grievous and the civilian faction led by Nute Gunray._

 _Skywalker, Kenobi and Palpatine were later recaptured by General Grievous, but with the help of R2-D2 they gained control of the ship and landed what remained of it down on Coruscant. However, Grievous escaped and together with the remains of the Separatist fleet fled to the Outer Rim Territories._

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 1: New Enemies Emerge**

The empty darkness that which was called space erupted as two small spacecrafts, those capable of carrying one pilot, could be seen flying through space as they approached a planet unlike anything ever seen before.

It's surface looked to be completely made of massive buildings, a sight which was rarely seen else where in the galaxy. As the two spacecrafts approach the planet, a massive fleet of warships appeared behind them, currently the force which was escorting the two spacecrafts into battle.

"Master, we're approaching the battle and by the looks of it, they already started the party without us."

A voice said over the the communications array and another voice responded, "I figured as much Anakin. You know how general Grievous is when it comes to making his big entrance in battles like these."

The young man - now named Anakin - started laughing as they soon approached the battle over the capital world of the Republic as it was being attacked by what remained of the Confederacy of Independent Systems and their droid forces.

"Now let us join in on the fun." said Kenobi.

Soon a device in front of the two Jedi knights created an image of a young man around the age of Anakin, " _Skywalker, Master. I assumed you two got the mission details from both master Yoda and Mace Windu._ "

Obi-Wan nodded, "Yes we did. And I hope your fleet has made progress towards creating a hole for both me and Anakin to slip in through."

The young man's lips became thin, " _Unfortunately. . .the enemy fleet is far stronger than we originally anticipated and I believe over the last few hours, I think I've lost three to four cruisers while a few more are severely damaged and are in need of repair. The CIS have certainly decided to make this their last attempt at any kind of offensive aimed towards crippling us. But I think we've weakened them just enough for you two._ "

Both Jedi understood their fellow member has certainly done his best to do what is asked of him.

"Thank you Raiden. Just hold out long enough and keep the droid army busy." asked Obi-Wan, knowing that the enemy wasn't going to go down without fighting.

 **~o0o~**

 **Near Coruscant**

 **A Few Minutes Earlier**

The battle in space raged as Republic ships fought their way through the endless number of CIS warships, desperate to get to the Invisible Hand; Grievous' flagship. The Separatist ships forming a barrier around the capital ship, engaging the Republic relentlessly in an effort to stave them off as the Invisible Hand tried to find an open way to jump into hyperspace with their prize. . .

Chancellor Palpetine, the leader of the Republic.

The Venator-class ship called Benevolence engaged in a broadside battle with a Separatist Munificent-class frigate, the turbolaser on its starboard unleashed an onslaught of fire and cannons lining the frigate firing ceaselessly. The ship was also receiving punishment of its own from the frigate, explosions rocking both ships as the turbolaser rounds slammed around the two ships.

Within the bridge, the ship's crew fought desperately to knock out the frigate. Standing at the front was a young man around his early twenties with black hair and dark, calculating grey eyes, currently witnessing the scene before him as numerous cruisers engaged the Separatist fleet.

A scene that included over thirty Republic cruisers under his command were sent in to break through and allow for Jedi knights Obi-Wan and Anakin to slip in and get back the chancellor before the Separatist escaped.

Nearly two hours have passed and neither side has made much headway towards their objective. Something that Raiden was more than ready to do in order to stop the enemy. Turning around, he walked back to the command center and found the crew members trying to keep contact with the rest of the fleet and coordinate the attack.

"Divert all engine power to the turbolasers," said the ship's captain. Raiden approached the table and saw that they were still locked in heavy combat against the CIS and with the way this battle was going, nothing was going to change.

"Sir, one of our turbolasers has just been severely damaged," said a clone bridge attendant. Raiden and the captain looked at each other for a moment, both men realizing the importance of this mission as time was not on their side.

"We're going to need more reinforcements. The Chancellor's life is in our hands," said the captain.

"Sir, we have a new group of enemy signals coming from our rear and above," said another crew member.

"More Separatists?"

"No. They're friendly. They're coming out of hyperspace now." Both Jedi and captain looked out to the left to see the incoming ships. First one Venator came, followed by three more, then eight. Above their ship, two more appeared. He looked closely at their insignia to confirm their identity.

A yellow circle with a red diameter around it save for open spaces on the circle's left and right.

Open Circle Fleet.

Immediately, the bridge crew let out cries of joy and praise as the ships moved to engage the Separatist ships, starfighters exiting from their hangars by the dozen.

Kenobi and Skywalker.

"Finally, about damn time these guys got here." Raiden muttered to himself as he walked towards one of the communication officers. After setting up communications between their fleet and the two Jedi knights that have entered the fight.

"Alright. . . let's end this fight."

 **~o0o~**

 **Over Coruscant**

 **Present Day**

"Flying is for droids," said Obi-Wan. His starfighter was currently dodging the missiles of the Vulture droid. He veered and weaved through the the engaged capital ships. The missiles still kept following him. However, he was more shocked when they flew past him. They exploded some distance in front of him.

He saw green-grey spherical objects appeared out of them and latch onto his ship.

"I'm hit. Anakin?" said Obi-Wan. Trying to figure out whether or not he should be alarmed or not.

"I see them," Anakin replied. "Buzz droids."

The buzz droids unlatched from their shields and went to work doing what they do best: mess up the starfighter. Already one was delving into the ship's hull to get to the control wires. Obi-Wan could only watch as the buzz droids began their dirty work. One scuttled over his cockpit window towards his astromech droid, R4.

"R4 be careful, there's a-" the older Jedi knight said.

The buzz droid got to the astromech and was already tearing into his dome. With little effort it cut through enough to tear the astromech's head off and send it flying into space, the head whining as it flew behind him.

"Oh dear," said Obi-Wan. He knew he was heading into a world of trouble. A buzz droid managed to carve its way into the control gauntlet, hampering any efforts Obi-Wan could make to steer the ship.

"Well," Obi-Wan started, "They're shutting down all of the controls," said Obi-Wan. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Anakin's fighter came up directly behind his.

"Move to the right so I can get a clear shot at them," said Anakin.

"The mission. . . get to the command ship. Get to the Chancellor. We're running out of tricks here," said Obi-Wan. His fighter at the moment was done for. It wouldn't make sense for Anakin to try and help him when he could continue on the mission to save the Chancellor. Any normal person would have left Obi-Wan to his fate and carried on.

Anakin wasn't a normal person by any means

He fired his lasers as carefully as possible, hitting a few buzz droids on Obi-Wan's ship. The strategy was working until the ones he was aiming for on the ship's left wing moved enough to where the cannon blasts hit the wing instead. Good news, the buzz droids were detached from the left wing and shot into space. The bad news, Obi-Wan had only one wing left.

"In the name of!" Obi-Wan yelled. The two ships moved through an area heavily contested between a Star Destroyer and a Separatist ship, explosions all around them.

 ***BOOM***

"Hold your fire, you're not helping here!" said Obi-Wan.

"I agree, bad idea," said Anakin, hitting himself in his mind to how undeniably reckless that approach was. A buzz droid near the nose of the starfighter damaged a coolant cable, causing it to spray onto Obi-Wan's cockpit window.

"I can't see a thing. My cockpit is fogging," said Obi-Wan, straining to see out the window. Anakin moved to get his ship into position, another idea in his mind.

Hopefully, he thought, it just my work.

"They're all over me. Anakin-" said Obi-Wan. Suddenly, he felt something hit his left as if to batter his already crippled starfighter. It hit him again, confirming his suspicions that it was Anakin. From what he could strain out of the glass, he could see Anakin trying to crush the buzz droids with his wing.

"Move to the right," said Anakin.

"Hold on Anakin. You're gonna get us both killed," said Obi-Wan. "Get out of here, there's nothing more you can do."

"I'm not leaving without you Master," said Anakin, ending all debating between the two. Anakin expertly moved his starfighter until he and Obi-Wan's ships were lined wingtip to wingtip. He moved in in order to ram into the ship one more time. This time the buzz droids were crushed, save for one. The lone survivor climbed onto Anakin's ship as he pulled away, immediately targeting R2.

The little blue droid fished out his charge arm to ward the buzz droid off.

"Hit him R2," said Anakin. The buzz droid made the first advance. R2 countered by hitting him with the arm, sending it scurrying back.

"Watch out," said Anakin. The buzz droid tried again, only to be sent back again.

"R2, hit the buzz droid's center eye," said Obi-Wan. R2 beeped, aiming the arm at the droid's center eye. He charged it up and fired it as the buzz droid got close. The buzz droid had moved in close, wanting to try and finish him off for good. It wasn't prepared to counter the electric hit. The arc of electricity hit it dead on, frying the eye and the circuitry inside.

It slumped to the floor, deactivated. The outside pressure sent it sliding off the ship.

"Yeah you got him!" Anakin cheered.

"Great R2," said Obi-Wan. Continuing their flight the turbolaser, anti-aircraft flak, and other guns intensified.

"The general's command ship is dead ahead," said Anakin. The Invisible Hand stood as a bastion of firepower as it shot not only at them, but other ships in the area. R2 screamed as their ship narrowly avoided their fire. It seemed like every gun on the ship was firing.

"Well have you noticed the shields are still up!" said Obi-Wan.

"Sorry Master," said Anakin. He spun his Interceptor around Obi-Wan's, firing his laser cannons at the shield generators flanking the Invisible Hand's hangar. The generators were destroyed after the sustained blasts, dissipating the hangar's shield. A metal safeguard door began sliding into place to keep the pressure inside the shield. The Interceptors raced towards the rapidly closing hangar door.

"Oh I have a bad feeling about this," said Obi-Wan, bracing himself for what was to follow.

They gunned their engines to the max. It proved fruitful. They managed to get past the hangar door in the nick of time, the doors closing shut as soon as Anakin's fighter made it in. Their fighters hit the steel floor hard, crashing past barrels, weaponry and droids.

Obi-Wan shot out of his cockpit, his lightsaber coming to life as he spun in the air before touching the ground and slicing straight through the droids around him.

Anakin's ship halted to a stop. He hurriedly took off his safety belts and opened the cockpit, also jettisoning R2 out of the ship.

"There they are. Fire!" said a battle droid squad leader. The other droids under his command fired at the Jedi Knight. Anakin's lightsaber was already on as he spun it around in a swirling display that had their shots ricochet back to the droids.

He and Obi-Wan steadily made their way towards each other, deflecting the blaster shots back at the droids as the droids in the hangar advanced onto their position. Obi-Wan and Anakin soon switched to go on the offensive, moving forward to slice through the battle droids heading for them.

R2 rolled till he was behind them as if asking for orders.

"R2. Locate the Chancellor," said Obi-Wan, slicing through another battle droid. R2 beeped and headed to the closest computer terminal as the two Jedi finished off the last of the droids.

The last droid fell to the ground, braying it's 'death' yell as it clattered to the ground. R2 connected to the terminal with his scomp link and broadcast an image of the entire ship. A white light displayed the location of the Chancellor's beacon.

"The Chancellor's signal is coming from right there," said Obi-Wan pointing to the hologram. "The observation platform at the top of that spire."

Anakin's senses became uneasy as he felt a familiar presence on board the ship. "I sense Count Dooku."

"I sense a trap," said Obi-Wan.

"Next move?" asked the young Jedi Knight.

"Spring it."

The two only smirked, they lost count of how many times that they've been through situations like this, honestly, they've gotten used to pulling off such stunts in battle. After all these years of working together, nothing too significant between the two of them had changed.

Something they wanted to stay that way. . .

 **~o0o~**

 **Over Coruscant**

 **Star Destroyer - Benevolence**

The men on board the warship looked on as they soon saw the signals of both Obi-Wan and Anakin disappear as they entered the capital ship of Grievous. A figure who wanted nothing more than to rip apart both Obi-Wan and Raiden himself.

After all, Raiden and Obi-Wan personally gained the ire of the brutal general that lead all military operations for the Separatist forces.

It was here the opportunity presented itself as Raiden realized the chance of a lifetime by crippling the warship and keeping it where it was. Allowing for the general to be captured and ending this war quicker than before.

With both top leaders of the Separatist in the hands of the Republic, this would allow for them to deal with what remains of the leaders in the CIS. Men, who were for the most part, businessmen and people that had no idea as to how to run a government or a proper military force against the Republic.

Making it clear how outclassed these people when it came to making decisions that would have major consequences on their government. Soon he saw the ship starting to swing towards one direction, a particular open part of space.

One that would allow for them to escape the system. Something that they could not allow to happen, especially with both Obi-Wan and Anakin on that ship trying to rescue the chancellor from captivity.

"Captain! I want our forces to concentrate fire on the Invisible Hand. That warship is not to leave this system at all cost."

The captain spoke up, "Yes sir," he looked over towards the crew who operated the weapon systems, "Alright! You heard the general, concentrate fire on the capital ship of the Separatist fleet. We can't allow for them to escape."

All of the crew members got to work as they began to target the ship and with other Republic cruisers starting to open fire on the same target as well.

 ***BOOM***

 ***BOOOOM***

Explosions could be seen from the bridge of the warship as the sheer firepower of the Republic ships must have caused significant damage to the propulsion system in order to limit the ability for the ship to travel.

"General, we're currently engaging what's left of the Separatist fleet while still awaiting the signal from Kenobi and Skywalker."

The captain walked up right next to Raiden as he continued to watch the fleet of frigates continue to burn up. Raiden knew that this wasn't going to be the last battle with the Separatist as he knew there were still more of them out there.

"Come on you two."

He muttered to himself as he was left to his own thoughts after the captain left to continue monitoring the battle.

Time was beginning to run out for the Republic fleet as the capital ship remained dead in space while there was silence between both the two Jedi knights on board and the the fleet of Republic ships moping up the Separatist.

"Let's hope nothing ain't going wrong in there." said the young Jedi as he continued to mop up what was left of the Separatist fleet.

 **~o0o~**

 **Over Coruscant**

 **Star Destroyer - Invisible Hand**

Obi-Wan was thrown hard into the railing of the upper stairway, falling to the ground. Dooku raised his hand, using the Force to cause the section to fall on top of him, knocking the Jedi Master unconscious. Anakin could only watch in stunned silence. Fear washed over him briefly as he realized he was on his own. Everything now rested firmly on his shoulder.

Sadness because his former master, his best friend, a man he could call his brother, was now currently unconscious on the floor.

However, another emotion was beginning to fill him.

Anger.

He looked with rage-filled eyes he got to his feet and charged Dooku, kicking him off the stairway. He leaped down as well and the two men continued their fight. Their lightsabers clashed endlessly in a display or red and blue, white sparking in every time their blades crashed together.

The Count's Makashi against Anakin's Shien. Their lightsabers met again, pressing into the other.

"I sense great fear in you Skywalker. You have hate; you have anger, but you don't use them," said Dooku.

Anakin hit the lightsaber away from him.

"If he wants hate and anger, I'll give it to him," Anakin thought.

For three years the Count had egged him, threatened him and his loved ones, and caused discord, chaos and death wherever he went. Anakin could still feel the tingle on the edge of his arm where his real arm met his robotic limb. From cutting off his arm to when the Count had captured them on Korriban to now, and the Count had the sense to have a smug look? This time, he was going to make him pay.

Anakin attacked first, using the emotions, the Jedi had forbidden others to use in combat.

He pressed the attack, for once causing the Count to lose ground as their fight took them around the Chancellor's chair. Dooku began to slowly realize that he his provocations were backfiring on him now as he fought to just keep up with Anakin's attacks.

Anakin now plainly saw that he was gaining the upper hand in their duel.

Their lightsabers clashed endlessly in intricate patterns and techniques prescribed to their forms.

Their lightsabers locked again and Anakin twisted their lightsabers down. Using an advanced Shien maneuver to move his hands around his hilt to twist it inside Dooku's grip. There was no defense to this. His lightsaber sliced of Dooku's hands.

The severed hands flew into the air to the force of the blow, Anakin catching the Count's lightsaber in his activation and activating the red beam.

The Count dropped to his knees as Anakin crossed the two lightsabers in an X around his throat. He was now completely at Anakin's mercy. On the other side of the observatory, the Chancellor's face broke into one of satisfaction at the sight that lay before him.

"Good Anakin, good," said the Chancellor, congratulating Anakin on his feat.

"Kill him." Both Anakin and Dooku's eyes widened. Count Dooku looked to the Chancellor as if pleading for his life, not understanding what was happening here. He thought his master would help him when the moment came to killing Skywalker.

Yet. . .

His master seemed to have merely used him. . . but for what?!

"Kill him now," harshly whispered Chancellor. The Count looked back up to Anakin. As Anakin looked at him, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of sorrow for the enemy at his mercy. The old man looked broken and utterly helpless.

Despite everything Dooku had done to him and countless others, how could he kill this defenseless old man?

"I shouldn't," said Anakin.

"Do it," said the Chancellor. Anakin looked down at Dooku's face on more time.

Suddenly, every negative emotion came back to him. The long three years of pain and anguish the Count made him feel. His eyes darkened at the thoughts. He flicked his wrists out, and the Count's head came tumbling down off his shoulders.

His body slumped to the floor, never to rise again. Count Dooku, leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, was dead.

"I couldn't stop myself," said Anakin, walking over to the chair.

"You did well, Anakin. He was too dangerous to be kept alive," said Palpatine as he comforted the young Jedi knight.

"Yes," said Anakin, turning the binders off on the chair, "but he was an unarmed prisoner. I shouldn't have done that. It's not the Jedi way."

"It is only natural," said Palpatine, standing up and moving around now that he was free from his confinement. "He cut off your arm, and you wanted revenge. It wasn't the first time, Anakin. Remember what you told me about your mother and the Sand People?"

"How could I not? I can never forget," Anakin thought.

"Now, we must leave before more security droids arrive," said Palpatine. Palpatine made for the stairs while Anakin went to check on Obi-Wan's state. To his relief, his friend was still alive.

"Anakin, there's no time. We must leave him," said Palpatine.

"He seems to be alright," said Anakin.

"Leave him or we'll never make it," said Palpatine.

"His fate will be the same ours," Anakin said grimly.

 **~o0o~**

 **Over Coruscant**

 **Star Destroyer - Invisible Hand**

The safety shutters to the bridge windows finally shut, allowing Anakin, Obi-Wan and the Chancellor to get their feet back on the floor without a risk of getting sucked out into the airless vacuum of space.

Grievous has escaped, again, aboard his damaged flagship.

"Can you fly a cruiser like this?" said Obi-Wan.

"You mean do I know how to fly what's left of this?" said Anakin. "Strap yourselves in."

They all moved to the 'recently' unoccupied chairs of the bridge crew. Anakin scanned over the controls of the ship. The engine flaps shut as he tried to slow the ship into the atmosphere to land down. Suddenly, an explosion rocked the ship dead center. The explosion spread out until the ship's rear tore off in a screech of metal away from the rest of the ship.

With the ship now without its primary means of control, it only made thing far worse than it needed to be.

"I think we lost something," said Anakin.

"Not to worry. We're still flying half of a ship," said Obi-Wan. The Invisible Hand now plunged towards the planet's surface, the outer hull glowing red from the heat of traveling through the different layers of the atmosphere.

Moments passed as the cruisers above them had witnessed the ship falling towards the planet, all of them wondering what was going to happen.

The ship hit the ground of the airfield hard, skidding along the metal surface. The slide completely tore apart the runway, and even a nearby tower. It kept on skidding until finally its momentum ceased and it was brought to a halt.

Inside, Anakin, Obi-Wan, Papatine and R2 let out a sigh or beep of relief. Obi-Wan ran his hand through his hair as he fought to keep from having a personal a heart attack.

"Another happy landing," he said. The comment caused Anakin to crack a smile, while the Palpatine looked at the two of them with mysticism and wonder as if asking how these two operated all this time.

 **~o0o~**

 **Location: Unknown**

 **Time: Unknown**

Under the light of the full moon was an army of unbelievable size, over a hundred thousand soldiers armed with swords and shields. They all resembled soldiers of an ancient empire which has been long forgotten in the minds of many.

However, these men were not to be trifled with as they controlled thousands of square miles of land. Subjugating and ruling over it's citizens with an iron fist and making sure no one tried to belittle the command of their emperor.

Within the span of a few days however, they soon found a structure unlike anything they had ever seen.

A building which resembled a gate of some sort with great marble pillars holding up the ceiling and roof of this building. With the entrance filled with anything but the dark, it made the soldiers weary of what lay on the other side.

Leading them was a general named Tiberius Gaius, a man who was well respected for leading successful invasions of other nations which fell under the flag of the Empire.

Even he felt nervous about what could be found on the other side, their scouts never returned from the gate the previous day and many of the soldiers began to talk among themselves that this mission was suicide.

Feeling the pressure of leading a successful attack, the general soon commanded his men to prepare themselves as they were to soon start marching through the gate.

As he watched from the nearby hill, seeing the countless soldiers dressed in heavy armor and carried their shields with the pride of fighting for their nation, emperor, and even their families as this was important to support the war machine which was the Empire.

"Do you believe attacking whoever it is on the other side, is right?" asked the general.

Next to him was one of the advisers sent to oversee the progress of the army, it was a young woman with bright red hair and eyes of similar color, seemed to be quite young compared to most of the soldiers marching. This woman was the daughter to the emperor and someone who grew tired of being seen as a joke to many within the Senate.

"I believe we should do as the emperor commands. If he says we must attack whoever it is on the other side, then so be it." she responded.

During the course of her whole life, the young woman never questioned what her father had instructed his armies to do. However, even she couldn't stand the sight of seeing such barbaric acts performed by their armies as they enslaved thousands of people, many being woman and young girls.

Such thoughts disgusted her, but there was very little she could do. Even her older brother took part in such things and took a few of the female slaves for himself to enjoy.

"Lady Pina, I must ask you something?" the older general said, wanting an answer for why he was feeling so. . . anxious about what may happen on the other side, or what may happen to the very nation he serves.

Was this attack going to backfire and resort in the destruction of his army? Or something far worse?

"What is it general Tiberius?" Pina asked, curious as to what is troubling the general.

The man didn't respond as he gathered his thoughts for a few moments, "Do you feel as if this invasion is going to be different than all the rest?"

Princess Pina didn't say anything as she was relieved to know she wasn't the only one feeling as this attack felt off, almost like they were poking a predator they should have no business in dealing with. Merely the thought of attacking whoever it was on the other side, it may result in terrible things to come for her nation.

But it was too late. . .

Their soldiers were marching through the gate, heading to fight an enemy they have no idea about. Their army size, weapons, or what their capabilities were. . .

Far too many questions left unanswered and now they play the dangerous game of storming over the border, having to see up close and personal what this unknown nation was like and how long it would take for them to conquer.

Or, so they think. . .

Princes Pina soon left the general to his own thoughts, wanting to report back to her father with news of the army marching through the gate, while wanting to be as far away as possible from the battle about to erupt.

Soon the general began to follow closely, still nervous as to what was going to happen to his troops. . .

He felt as if he declared war on an enemy unlike anything ever seen in their world, or what his world has ever seen before.

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 2: ATTACK**_

* * *

 **I don't know, I felt like posting a story like this because I wanted to.**

 **Or because I love Star Wars to death. . .so maybe that's the real reason why I'm doing this story. . .**

 **Besides, Rogue One is coming out in like two weeks, so yeah.**

 ***This was rewritten***


	2. Chapter 2

" ** _Misery, mutilation, destruction, terror, starvation and death characterize the process of war and form a principal part of the product._** " - Lewis Mumford

* * *

 _ **Attack on Coruscant!**_

 _Within days after the Separatist launched an attack on the Republic capital in order to capture chancellor Palpetine, there was another force at work!_

 _Soon an encounter unlike anything the Republic has ever seen is on it's way. While Jedi knight Raiden Dakkar and his clone legion would soon realize that there is far more to be done in order to secure the very faction they work for._

 _While a threat unlike any still eludes the Jedi council!_

 **~o0o~**

 **Over Coruscant**

 **Star Destroyer - Liberator**

Surrounding the capital of the Republic were hundreds of Venator class warships, armed to the teeth with turbo lasers and squadrons of fighters. It had been nearly three years since the start of the Clone Wars, a war between the Grand Army of the Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, one fought across multiple worlds of both sides.

When the CIS had first broken off, they had turned to the leadership of people such Nute Gunray to lead them.

Years prior to the Clone Wars, the CIS had invaded the peaceful world of Naboo and used its new droid army to blockade the world from supplies. However, the Jedi Order managed to successfully fight back the invaders with the help of the Naboo security forces and the queen herself.

After all this, the Jedi knights were forced to fight off hundreds of droid armies attacking. Most of the worlds under attack, who all aligned themselves with the Republic.

Soon things became desperate as many worlds threatened the Republic that they would leave if they did not create some kind of military force which would combat the ever-growing presence of droid forces.

Such an act to create army forced many to take a side, either create an army or find peaceful ways of ending this war.

In the end, those who wanted an army, would get their wish soon enough. After a Jedi knight by the name of Obi-Wan discovered the world of Komino, the Jedi Order discovered one of their own had placed an order for a clone army.

One which would fight for the Republic in this war against the CIS.

After the galaxy witnessed the battle on the world of Geonosis between the newly created clone army and droid forces, many new this would be the start of something far bigger than anything witnessed in their time.

Most within the Senate saw the clones as soldiers, but many of them saw these soldiers as living beings, ones forced from birth to fight.

On the Republic warship was one of the many legions of clones created to respond rapidly to any attack on worlds protected by the Republic or if the capital world itself came under attack, like the recent attempt by the droid commander General Grievous.

Now many clones were being cycled around as battle-tested soldiers were now coming back for rest while others went out to fulfill whatever it is they are needed for.

"Alright rooks, as you know we've been assigned to protecting Coruscant as this is standard rotating procedure." said someone.

In the massive hangar of the star destroyer was a group of ten clones in their phase II armors with black marks to signal what legion they are a part of. Standing in front of them was a clone, who appeared to be their commanding officer as he wore a shoulder pad along with scratches visible on his armor.

"And you will be spending a majority of your time on this cruiser until we get rotated out to another system." the commanding clone officer said.

One of the clones spoke up, "Sir, permission to speak?" he asked.

The commander nodded, wanting to hear what his fellow brother had to say.

"So essentially we're not going to see any action during this time. All we're going to do is train for the meanwhile, sir?" asked the clone trooper. It was a question on the minds of the others as they too wondered the same thing.

Clones were made with the idea of fighting an enemy, not spending time on a ship and training.

Walking across the front row of clones, the commander spoke up, "Look, I understand many of you want to prove yourselves in battle against the droid army. However, there's a reason why clone legions get cycled and for the time being, we're going to be spending time here in order to rest and refit until we're called in again."

Many of the clones understood what their commander was saying, but it still didn't help sate the feeling for battle.

It was what they were made to do. Their blood boiled whenever the taste of battle was taken away from them, but they obeyed any order they were given as it was in their nature to do so, and so they respected what their commanding officer had to say.

Soon another clone raised his hand, looking for permission to speak. Pointing towards him, the commanding clone wanted to hear what this soldier had to say.

"Captain Iron, I was curious about where the general is?" asked the clone trooper. Within moments many of the other clones had agreed with what he said, all of them wondering where the general went after the battle with the droid army.

The clone commander - who name was captain Iron - wanted to make sure all of them understand that their general had things to take care of on Coruscant.

"Look guys, general Dakkar is currently taking care of some Jedi business after the battle with general Grievous. He said he's going be coming back in a few days and we'll most likely start off with some level patrols of other systems for the time being." captain Iron said, wanting to give the clones a straight answer.

For the time being, they'll have to wait for the general to get back...

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 2: Attack**

Among the thousands of speeders traveling to and from where they needed to be and one of these was piloted by a Jedi knight that went by the name of Raiden Dakkar. A recently honored Jedi master at the young age of twenty-one years old.

His grey eyes starring off into the vast distance of the horizon, which was being dominated by the massive skyscrapers that commanded the sky. His thoughts were unfocused after master Yoda warned the other members of the council of the dark side of the Force could be felt.

Something many members of the council took into consideration and were to be cautious in the future.

Over the course of time, Raiden had seen the impact this war has had on the galaxy and knew what death and destruction was like. If anything, the dark side of the Force must have had something to do with this war, it was the only thing the young man could think of at a time like this.

Even after crippling a majority of what was left of the droid army when they attempted to capture the chancellor in a surprise attack which would've brought the war into the favor of the enemy, but was foiled by the Jedi knights and their clone army. However, while it was a victory to safely return the chancellor to the Republic, it failed as they didn't bring in the leader of the droid army, general Grievous, into custody.

"Huh, sometimes I wonder when this war will ever end. Though with general Grievous leading the way... that won't be anytime soon."

The Jedi muttered to himself as he ran his hand through his black hair.

Being that he was a former padawan to Obi-Wan Kenobi, a man that was like a father-figure to the young boy when Obi-Wan found him when he was just a year old on the planet of Mandalore, a world that believed in the customs of becoming a warrior and earning honor for your family's name.

However, there was something strange that Obi-Wan found about him. Raiden felt similar to another person who Obi-Wan had come to meet on his adventures, and that was the former queen of Naboo; Padme Amidala.

Soon his master was able to figure out Raiden was related to the young woman, and since they didn't look all that much similar, they figured he was most likely her distant cousin. Something Obi-Wan had rarely seen in his time traveling this galaxy.

Although Raiden possessed abilities which made him special compared to the billions of life forms spread out across the galaxy...

The Force.

The Living Force represented the energies of all living things, and those energies were fed into the Cosmic Force that bound the galaxy together and communicated to individuals through the midi-chlorians. The two main practitioners of the Force's power were the Jedi Order and the Sith.

Usage of the Force granted a number of useful powers, such as the ability to sense impending attacks; to push and lift physical objects; influence the thoughts of others, known as the 'Jedi mind trick' and even see the future or maintain one's consciousness after death.

Dark side users strong with the Force could summon lightning from their fingertips.

Jedi taught younglings that the Force could be used for many purposes, including protection, persuasion, wisdom, the manipulation of matter and the performance of great physical feats. Although through the years, there were individuals who didn't think that the Force existed.

Though only certain individuals were Force-sensitive, the Force resided within all living things and could be extracted. Because of this, Force-sensitives could feel a 'disturbance in the Force' whenever there was a great loss of life. Droids, however, being mechanical creations, and thus possessing no true life, could never sense the Force.

Certain locations in the galaxy had strong connections to the Force but many could not be found by those that couldn't sense it. There were also entire planets that had strong connections to the force, these include the Force planet, Mortis and Moraband.

This talent had secured the future of Raiden.

And here he was on Coruscant, a Jedi knight and fighting in a war that was tearing the galaxy apart the longer this went on. After he helped to mop up what was left of the droid army still in space, he was given time off until they would redeploy him elsewhere in the galaxy.

But the young man had been a part of far too many attacks, both with other Jedi masters as well as leading his own clone forces into battle.

Though many within the council became concerned about the young Jedi knight and Yoda had suggested he was to take some time off from the war to recuperate from the numerous missions he's lead in the past few years since he was given the rank in which they would be allowed to field a unit of clones.

And Raiden excelled far faster than any Jedi knight before him. Soon, he climbed the ladder to the point where he lead an entire legion on the battlefield.

For all his success, the young man had always been a lone wolf, being someone who preferred to be with the clones rather than the Jedi knights with him. There were a few exceptions such as Obi-Wan, Anakin Skywalker were some of the only Jedi that Raiden felt comfortable with.

However, due to the Jedi's strict teaching; where no Jedi could have an emotional attachment in any way.

That one rule meant that Jedi masters were not able to have a lover in any kind of way. And for Raiden, it was a concept which never truly bothered him as he tended to use battle as a way to distract himself from such thoughts.

In the end, the Jedi didn't think about such things very often in his life, though he was far more concerned about making sure he completed his missions more than anything else. The young man had a soldier's mentality with abilities of a Jedi knight making him quite a force to be reckoned with.

As many agreed with that very thought, including some of the more powerful Jedi knights such as Mace Windu and Yoda.

It made him feel... different from the other Jedi masters, or so he thought to himself.

Even to this day, Obi-Wan still gave him advice from time to time whenever he wasn't feeling like himself. Obi-Wan would always remind him the importance of what they did for the galaxy, trying to keep the peace and to make sure the dark side would never again rise as a threat against the Republic.

Such a thought was what kept many Jedi knights fighting, never wanting the galaxy to face a threat of that proportion ever again...

 **~o0o~**

 **Coruscant, Republic Capital**

 **Same Time**

Among the crowded walkways of Coruscant, some of them stopped walking when they noticed a structure they had never seen before in their lives. In front of them was a massive stone structure with some pillars holding up a ceiling and roof.

Many of them were curious as to what this was doing here.

Soon some of the clone soldiers assigned with patrolling the area had made their way through the number of people standing around, in awe of what they were seeing. As the clones began to get people to disperse from the area, they soon heard sounds of footsteps coming from the dark tunnel in the structure.

The clone troopers took out their weapons and aimed them at the entrance of this gate, seeing as there was nothing but darkness.

From the darkness emerged hordes of soldiers and footmen equipped with armor reminiscent of armies from long ago, from before traveling to other worlds was even possible. Behind these soldiers were creatures unlike anything people had ever seen before.

Some looked like races of other beings, except these looked to be used by this army as soldiers as well.

They assaulted everyone who happened to be there. Disregarding age and whatever race they were, their only objective was to kill anyone in their way of the Empire. Even these soldiers didn't realize who they had just attacked. Soon people began to flee as they realized the intentions of these soldiers and what they were here to do.

Within moments, the commander of the clone forces there, gave the order to use their weapons and began to fire on the enemy forces.

However, there were far too many as the clones were overrun and forced to retreat as they covered the escape of the civilians in the area. Trying their best to keep the enemy at bay as the commander realized they were going to need support if they were going to stop these enemy soldiers.

"Command! This is Bravo team! There are enemy soldiers near our position, we need support!" the clone commander said as he and his men held their position as they saw thousands of soldiers pouring out of the gate.

They knew without any reinforcements, this was a hopeless battle...

 **~o0o~**

 **Financial District**

 **Minutes Later**

Raiden decided to stop for a drink as he remembered about a bar quite close to his apartment and thought there wouldn't be any issues with getting a drink, he thought to himself. Getting out of his vehicle, he started approaching the bar until he heard sounds of screaming in the distance.

Looking over towards the direction of the nearby screams, he saw smoke rising a few blocks away, making him wonder as to what was going on.

Soon the Jedi knight started rushing towards where he heard the screaming of people. Once he turned the corner, the young Jedi knight saw a scene unlike anything he's ever seen before as people were running away in fear from what appeared to be invaders...

However, these invaders looked to be from another era with their weapons and armor.

Flying above the terrified crowd were creatures that looked like an offshoot version of a Krayt with wings and he saw a man dressed in armor, riding the beast, using their weapons to kill any of the stragglers. However they weren't the only ones attacking the district as well.

Behind the retreating crowds were thousands of soldiers that wore armor which seemed to be as ancient as they were and these warriors were only armed with weapons like swords, axes, and shields, to protect themselves from the possible combat they may face against their enemies. Many of these soldiers bore a symbol of a bird-like creature colored in gold with the purple background wrapping itself around.

Amongst the enemy forces were rather strange beings, most likely mercenaries or slaves who were forced to fight for this foreign army, making it obvious as they tore through crowds of civilians trying their best to flee from the area. The young Jedi knight knew that entering into hand-to-hand combat with an enemy army of this size in an area this crowded was not a smart choice for him.

Adding in the strange creatures to support the thousands of armored soldiers, it was going to be a difficult battle for him to fight. For a single Jedi knight that was.

Bringing in the clone army was a different story completely. With no blasters, rifles, or energy weapons of any kind, this fight was going to be a blood bath as it was going to turn into a close-quarter battle.

In the end, Raiden highly doubted those shields would be able to stop a lightsaber in any way. But before he could engage in the enemy forces, he needed to contact any nearby Republic forces close by. He turned on his communicator.

"This Jedi Raiden Dakkar in the Financial District! I need any Republic forces in the area to get here cause we have an enemy force here!"

The communicator had sparked to life with a voice of a clone commander.

"General Dakkar, this is Bravo team, we're currently holding the line against whoever the heck these guys are!" responded a clone trooper, one which heard the message from the Jedi.

Looking around, he soon saw clone troopers staying close behind the fearful citizens as they allowed them to escape the area. Raiden started making his way through the crowd of people, appearing next to the clone troopers in need of support.

The clone soldier responded, "Genera! We have enemy forces closing in our position and I don't know how long we'll hold."

Raiden took in the view as the clone troopers were using what little vehicles they had with them to act as cover while they fired at the enemy forces attempting to rush them. It didn't take a genius to realize these men needed help as quickly as he could.

Tapping the clone commander on the shoulder, "Soldier, I need a long range com-link to the cruisers in orbit. I can get us the support we need."

Nodding, the commander did as he was told and called out to one of his men, "CC-2145, get your ass over here now!"

One of the clone soldiers firing at the enemy forces, he stood up from his position and rushed towards the commander and Jedi knight. Standing in front of them, he saluted them.

"Sir reporting in!" he said.

Raiden approached him and gripped his shoulder, "Trooper, you have a long range communication device with you right?" asked him.

The clone nodded, "Yes sir. I do."

"Then I suggest you get it out and let me make a message to the cruiser; Liberator." Raiden said, he was beginning to see the clones were going to be overwhelmed at this rate, "Tell them that we're need of support and to order captain Iron along with a few platoons of my legion to get here, and if they asked on who's order... say it was from me directly."

Without even wasting another minute, the Jedi knight went to work.

The Jedi knight had reached for the two metal cylinder secured on his belt. When he gripped the devices in his hand and pressed a button on the side of them, what came out of it were four foot long blade made of pure blue light.

Devices like these were wielded by only Jedi knights and their ancient enemy; the Sith.

Both lightsabers were gripped tightly in his hands. He then jumped over the line of defense the clones had made and started making his way towards the rushing invaders. Some of the enemy soldiers noticed him wielding the swords made of pure light and became started.

Though it didn't stop them as they went to engage the Jedi.

One of them tried to swing at the young man until Raiden used the force and knocked the sword out his hand. Quickly, Raiden swung one of the blades and cut him in half.

Soon more soldiers arrived at the scene, however, the clones covered Raiden's weak side to make sure none of the enemy soldiers tried to attack him from behind.

A group of the mysterious invaders encircled the Jedi knight.

' _Oh boy... these guys are so screwed._ ' Raiden thought.

When one of them swung his sword at the Jedi, he avoided the blade and cut the man's arm off. Using the force, he pushed him into some of the others. Two more tried to attack him...

However Raiden had swung his light saber in a wide-arc sweep and cut a few of the soldiers in half. One of them had tried to hit his back-side but Raiden was quicker and used the man's momentum against him and knocked his feet under him.

Before the man could even hit the ground, Raiden had stabbed the soldier through the stomach.

A few of them were slowly backing away, looking on in fear that some of their comrades were being decimated by one man wielding swords made of light.

Gaining a new found reason as they wanted to avenge their comrades, it didn't stop them from bringing back glory in the name of the Empire and more of them rushed up towards the lone warrior. Raiden had rushed up to meet them and used the Force to push them back and once they were dazed from the impact, the remaining ones that stood up, had been cut across in half from the blade.

Their swords were useless as they made contact with the lightsaber; because they were simply cut in half the moment there was contact between the metal and the highly concentrated amount of plasma which resulted in high temperatures of heat.

Raiden ducked underneath one of soldier's swing and used one of his lightsabers to cut the soldier on his left across the throat. And used the Force to throw his body at a group of soldier heading towards him.

As he realized that there was more of them than he originally thought, Raiden knew that he had to cover the retreating civilians and after using a Force push to throw back most of the soldiers. He started to break into a run.

"And here I thought I was going to have a normal day, but that isn't the case anymore. Well I have to kick some more ass before the clones get here."

 **~o0o~**

 **Financial District, Coruscant**

 **Ten Minutes Later**

General Tiberius masked his shock when he came though the gate, seeing a city unlike anything he's ever seen in his lifetime. Buildings which seemed to rise towards the sky with glass and metal holding it up, strange flying objects flew through the air and as the people themselves made it even more strange.

' _What have we just gotten ourselves into?_ ' thought the general.

As he continued to ride on his horse, closely monitoring the battle with messengers coming back and forth from the front lines. The fight was going rather well as his men haven't met the enemy military, however, his most recent messages brought back tales of soldiers dressed in white armor with red paint on them, tearing their forces with magic rods.

One of his soldiers called out to him, "Sir! We have a messenger returning from _that_ front line!"

It wasn't what the soldiers looked like, it was what they were using which terrified the man.

"General!" one of his soldiers called out.

Turning around, the man got off his horse and walked over towards the soldier. Wondering what had happened. General Tiberius saw a messenger limping towards their current position, too many thoughts ran through the man's mind as to what had happened to him.

Once the man reached them, they all truly saw the damage done to him. He lost his left arm and his face was burned on the left side. A sight which caused many of the soldiers to vomit once seeing him. While Tiberius wanted to know what happened to him.

He placed his hand on the messenger's shoulder and asked him, "Soldier, what happened to you? Who did this to you?"

Coughing up blood, it took the man a moment to respond to his general. Trying his best to formulate what he had witnessed into words to which the others could understand. He grabbed his side as he realized there wasn't much time left for him.

"General," he said, "We tried to fight them... but they were too strong."

Blood continued to flow out of his wound, "T-They used weapons we've never seen before. Strange metal rods which tore apart our shields and burned flesh like fire. I've never seen such magic in my lifetime... I'm sorry... that we failed you sir." he said.

"T-There were more of these soldiers... but, how!? Tell me more!" the general commanded.

The messenger's breathing became worse with time, "M-More of those soldiers came... except... they... they..."

Soon his voice died out, letting the men know that he had succumbed to his fatal wounds. The general's fears came true when he saw something in the distance. In the sky were metal creatures flying through the air with strange sphere-like objects on the side.

"Sir! What do we do?!" one of the soldiers called out.

It was here the general decided to find a way to end this as best as he can. By seeing if he could find a peaceful way to end this battle, even if they were the invaders in this situation here. Once he saw the kind of weapons and technology this world had at it's disposal, then fighting them was a mistake.

One which would his nation would regret.

Now, it was the time to solve this... even if it might cost him his life.

"Men, I have come to a decision." he announced, with his soldiers looking at him. All of them wondering as to what their general decided to do. Most of them were full of fear of the place they were fighting in, seeing beings they've never seen before.

They just wanted to return to their own world, to their families and loved ones. But, this world felt angry and even dangerous. Like there was something much bigger going on in this world than anyone of them could ever hope to understand.

But...

None of them wanted to.

"We must try and leave... there is no telling if we'll escape this world alive... but we must alert the me. We must leave immediately, or fear being destroyed." general Tiberius said, knowing the difficult challenge which lay ahead of him.

He walked back to his horse and mounted it, the general was only filled with despair, now just realizing the monster he and his army had awoken. Now, there was no telling what kind of response may come... but his nation was now going to be targeted.

' _I just hope we can live to fight another day..._ ' he thought.

Soon the general and the men assigned to protecting him began moving right behind the advancing army, who was being killed at an alarming rate by this nation's very own army.

An enemy they would regret angering...

 **~o0o~**

 **Coruscant**

 **Same Time**

Racing through the air was over a dozen LAATs filled with clone troopers. The men that make up the Grand Army of the Republic and these men were born to fight from an early age as well as heavily trained from birth to become the elite army that the Jedi knights command in the war against the droid army led by the new leader of the Separatist; General Grievous.

Who was the second highest ranking commander after the Sith lord, but due to the death of the Sith lord Count Dooku, now Grievous would be in control.

Inside one of the transports, or 'gunships' as many of the clones and even the Jedi have nicknamed them. These clones were a part of the 336th Legion or as some within the Republic know this clone army as the 'Ghost Legion' from their extraordinary accomplishments in battle.

A unit that was comprised of ten-thousand well armed clones that had gained a reputation after numerous battles across the galaxy in which they laid waste to the Droid Army and gained numerous victories for the Republic, even in the face of over-whelming odds.

They fought with strength, speed, and savagery that seemed to be on another level, like a ghost.

Something that could not be seen, but felt in some ways that is almost incomprehensible. This unit had managed to do the impossible and many within the army had put them up their with the legends like the 501st Legion.

And escorting the gunships were some fighters such as the Arc-170 to protect them from the dragon-like creatures flying around and making sure the air was clear of enemy forces. And they were also told by general Dakkar that the same men on the ground are the same ones riding the creatures.

Within the lead gunship, some of the clones were quietly standing in their phase two armor, Phase II clone trooper armor was the standard issue armor of the Grand Army of the Republic's Clone troopers during the later days of the Clone Wars. More advanced than its predecessor, it was capable of supporting more specialized equipment. Unlike the Phase I, the armor did not feature an internal life support system, necessitating the use of an external respirator in the absence of breathable atmosphere.

The clones had painted on a signature color so they could be easily distinguished from others; they decided on the color black.

Standing in front of all the clones was their commander; captain Irons. He was a man that expected the very best from his men and would give everything to make sure his men survive even if he has to die in the end. But the first time, he went into combat it was also the first time Raiden had entered combat as well with Obi-Wan.

"We're approaching the location general Dakkar! Now all we know about this army is that they don't possess any blasters but, they do have the numbers advantage here so don't take them lightly!"

Soon the pilot was telling them that they were just a few minutes of the landing zone code-named; Point Rain.

"Alright! You boys have fun down there and make sure to kick their asses too!"

Pilot gave his final word to his fellow brothers before hovering over the LZ. The landing doors of the gunship opened up on both sides, the clones started sliding down the rope with their walkers being unloaded in the back of the gunship.

The unit was only made up of one-hundred and eighty men supported by twelve one-manned walkers as this was only a single unit compared to multiple other groups of men being deployed all around the same district to eliminate the enemy force.

Captain Iron soon gave the order for the unit to start moving out, while following the last known radio location of general Dakkar.

The clones had saw that the streets were empty and it seemed like a ghost town the further they moved into the district. Soon the only noise they could hear were the sounds of screeching and their own footsteps along with sounds of heavy steps with their walkers.

One of the clones spoke up, "I got a bad feeling about this captain..." he said.

Soon they heard sounds of roaring along with engine noises. Until one of the clones in the rear-guard called out to the rest of them, "Hey! Look!" he yelled.

In the sky above them were the Arc-170 fighters hunting down the flying creatures. Most of the clones witnessed a chase between two of the creatures and an Arc fighter; resulting in the creatures being brought down by the fighter.

"Alright, at least we know the enemy doesn't have an advantage in the air like we do. Come on boys, let's go!" captain Iron ordered as they began moving along the empty streets. One of the clones in the front of the group called out to the captain.

"Sir, we're just a couple hundred meters away from the general." one of them said as he motioned towards the front.

Due to their military training, they never made unnecessary noise in combat and made sure to check their corners whenever they came to an alleyway. At one intersection the clones had heard the sound of a lightsaber being activated in the distance.

"Quiet, we don't want the enemy to know about our location." said Iron.

As they moved towards the street, they soon saw a few of the armored soldiers riding on four legged animals. Iron made a few gestures towards some of the clones behind him, all of them nodding as they understood what he asked.

Using all the training they've received, Iron and about six other clones moved towards the enemy quietly. They soon stopped when they heard them having a conversation, with most of the words weren't understandable to the clones.

It was here captain Iron saw the respect most of the soldiers had for one of them. Seeing as to how they did whatever he said along with soldiers coming back and forth, possibly with news of the battles erupting across the area.

Once he saw the displeasure on the man's face, Iron realized this man was the army's general. The importance of keeping him alive was quite high.

"We found the leader. Eliminate all other hostiles, no harming the general." ordered captain Irons.

Soon he gave the order and the clones started firing at the guards protecting the general and killing them within seconds. Then they shot the animal the enemy general was riding on, making him fall off and hit the ground.

A clone rushes up to him and handcuffs him. Looking over the edge of the walkway, Iron saw the battle erupting below between their general and whatever clone forces were with him against a horde of enemy soldiers.

"General, we're right above you and we're waiting for you to give the signal, sir."

 **~o0o~**

 **Coruscant**

 **Same Time**

Raiden could only smirk after getting the message from Irons about where him and his men were at the moment. Just hanging around on the level above him and waiting for his command for them to drop in.

"Well let's not keep my men waiting any longer. So you guys have an army..."

Most of them looked at the lone man in confusion since the language barrier prevented them from understanding each other very well. But one word they did catch was the word 'army', which this didn't sit right with any of them. Although they did have the numerical advantage in this situation, they knew eventually even the greatest of warriors can't single handily defeat an army.

"That's great...but..I think it's time you guys get to meet my army! Now captain Irons!"

Just as he said that, soldiers looked to hear a man yelling, "Go! Go! Go!"

And to their shock and horror, they saw dozens of men wearing heavy white armor with black markings on them and realized these men were different from the others. Once these mysterious soldiers grappled down and they took out these rods of metal and started firing on them.

The clones had started opening up fire on the soldiers and a few moments later behind them had appeared two gunships filled with some more men from the 336th Legion.

All the enemy could do was cower in fear when they witnessed what came out these soldier's metal rods; some type of blue light came out, breaking through their shields very easily and killing them without much of an issue.

Raiden had started rushing towards the enemy and started cutting through the ranks of soldiers. While the remaining few had immediately fell to their knees and put their hands up in a surrendering fashion. Once the fight was over, the clones started grouping together the remaining soldiers.

Captain Irons had walked up to Raiden after his men secured the war prisoners. He saluted him before speaking.

"General Dakkar, we have gathered the remaining enemy forces and are getting similar reports of our men across the district getting the enemy forces to surrender. And we are also getting reports from the fighters that all enemy forces in the air are taken care of. Also... we captured their general along the way, sir."

Raiden simply looked off into the distance like earlier, "Very good captain, let me ask you something?"

Irons nodded.

"What do you think will happen after this? Because the way I see it is that people will want us to strike back whoever these people are and show them what happens. But that's entirely up to the Senate to decide because well...you and me; we're just used to keep peace around the galaxy, following whatever order the Senate makes..." Raiden said, thinking about what may follow after something like this.

The captain had stayed quiet for a few moments before talking, "I believe that the Senate has to listen to what the people want in terms of a response and that is a military strike, with all respect sir, that is what I believe will happen."

Raiden looked back at captain Irons with a smirk.

"I had a feeling you were going to say that and to tell you the truth, I believe that as well. The masses always have an effect on the way governments do things. You can't have a country without those underneath you and sometimes listening to them; can help to propel you forward onto a path like never before."

The clone trooper let the words settle in before asking one final question.

"Do you think we'll be sent in?"

The Jedi knight simply let out a chuckle at the clone's question. He turned around and walked right next to the clone and put his hand on his shoulder, "Well Irons...I gotta say...our chances of going into that gate from where they came from is pretty high, well knowing the council...they'll probably send me in. So best be prepared in case Irons."

Raiden started walking to the waiting gunship that was to take him back to the Jedi temple to give them a report on the battle that had broken out here. The clone commander had looked through his T-shaped visor to see the massive stone building that was reason why those men came here.

Questions ran through him like why, how are questions being asked by the Republic. The soldier had started heading for the gunship as well, seeing the enemy leader being thrown inside the gunship along with the clones, looking quite calm yet nervous as to what may happen.

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 3: AFTERMATH**_

* * *

 **Well that would be the end of the second chapter and sooooon...**

 **Yeah, I decided to make this chapter purely about the battle between the Republic and the Empire from the GATE anime. So yeah, they just got their asses hand to them by the clone forces and with something like this...**

 **There will be hell to pay...**

 **So yeah, hope you guys enjoyed and I'll see ya guys next time.**


	3. Chapter 3

" ** _An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea whose time has come._** " - Victor Hugo

* * *

 ** _WAR!_**

 _Following a recent attack on Coruscant by an unknown enemy force!_

 _Jedi general Raiden Dakkar and his 336th Legion had managed to defeat a massive enemy force in the Finacial District and after discovering where this massive army had come from; a gate of some sort that had appeared out of nowhere._

 _And because of this, the Senate will decide on whether or not to take the fight to the enemy._

 _And as for Jedi knight Raiden Dakkar, he and his clone troopers are on their way to the Jedi Temple to give the report about this new enemy of the Republic to the Jedi Council._

 **~o0o~**

 **Coruscant, Jedi Temple**

 **Few Hours Later**

Night fell over the area as numerous clone trooper units from the 336th legion were brought in to keep order while the Coruscant guards swept through the area, making sure there weren't any foreign soldiers left from the battle. Most were shocked to see how easily the enemy was subdued by the clone army although, nonetheless, they were happy the enemy forces did surrender before being obliterated by the firepower of the Republic.

With the chaos in the streets, the Senate had decided that they would leave the clones in the area to make sure there are no more of these enemy forces hiding along with making sure that criminals are getting away with something.

Inside one of the gunships was Raiden, who at the moment was on his way to the Jedi Temple to give the council the report about what had happened. As they were nearing the temple, he saw a few more gunships making their way to the district.

No doubt picking up the huge number of prisoners that were left. And that was to become a problem for the Republic.

However, due to the quick-thinking of chancellor Palpetine, the man had suggested they take them to the new prison being set up on the Outer-Rim and try to get information out of the enemy prisoners as well as their leader, who was captured in the attack.

"General, we should be nearing the temple in a few minutes, Sir."

Captain Irons had stood next to Raiden and the two looked out of the open door to see the temple getting larger as they drew closer to the massive building that the Jedi knights used to train and nurture their new generation of Jedi. Within more recent years, the Jedi have become generals instead of peacekeepers like their ancestors before them.

"Well Irons, I'll be seeing you guys soon. And just warn the boy they'll probably have to be moving out for combat so just tell them to have some things packed up cause I get the biggest feeling in the world that council's going to want to see what this 'other side' looks like." said the Jedi knight

The clone commander nodded, knowing that his general was usually like this with a sense of humor like a friend of the general; Skywalker was like this as well. Both of them got along fine and they seemed to share the same sense of humor when it came to precarious situations like this one at hand.

"Sir, yes, sir."

Irons had saluted the general. Just as they finished their conversation, the gunship's pilot had told them they were about thirty-seconds away from the temple.

Once the transport landed on of the many landing pads added to the Jedi Temple after the introduction of the clone army years ago. The transport finally touched the ground and Raiden stepped off of it, but not before saluting to the rest of the men inside the transport at the moment.

"Hope the meeting goes swell general." yelled out the captain.

Raiden smirked, "I think I'll manage!"

The Jedi knight had started walking the steps of the temple, he was greeted by many of young children still in training to become a Jedi. His appearance was quite normal for some Jedi, he stood at a height of around six feet with a frame that was built for combat since he was trained when he was young.

His clothing was a bit strange compared to most Jedi knights. It was comprised of the normal white colored robes with armor laying underneath the vital areas where he could be hit, making it possible for him to fight with a bit more recklessness than the average Jedi. Even having his chest area mainly comprised of armor.

Once he made it through the floors of the temple and when he had gotten out of the elevator, the Jedi was greeted by someone he didn't think would be here in the Jedi Temple of all places. A woman by the name of Padme Amidala, who was both the senator for Naboo and as well as the Queen from a very young age.

She stood a few inches shorter than Raiden with long brown hair with dark brown eyes. Although anyone who knew her well enough knew that she had the spirit and toughness to make her look as if she was a Jedi knight herself. But it was her accomplishments of helping to defeat the blockade and invasion of her home-world of Naboo that made her famous amongst the Republic.

How did Raiden know her? Well he come to know her after having to be a body guard for her at one point during the clone wars, one example would be during a mission the senator took on to find information on the CIS new droid factory.

Both of them never did tell people that they actually met back on Naboo when Raiden was still a padawan to Obi-Wan a few years back.

Besides that... they were cousins. Something which surprised everyone, including Padme's husband; Anakin Skywalker. He knew about their secret relationship and while Raiden knew he was breaking the rules of being a Jedi, he was willing to let it go.

Just this once.

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 3: Aftermath**

He walked out of the elevator and saw senator Padme Amidala talking with a fellow senator. It was a few months since the two had last seen each other and the only person that knew about their friendship was Obi-Wan and while he didn't disapprove of it, he had warned Raiden not to have any attachments.

"I don't understand how those men got onto the planet..."

"Actually I may have an idea of where that massive army had come from cause I literally was fighting some of those guys down there."

The two senators jumped when they heard the third voice behind them and when they looked back to see that Raiden was standing behind them. The other senator couldn't see it but a smile graced Padme's face the moment she who it was.

"Ah Jedi master Dakkar, I had a feeling you were down there because we got reports of the 336th Legion, or your Legion I should say now general."

Raiden only laughed at the senator's little jab at him. He was known by most Jedi as a brilliant tactician and even if he wasn't a Jedi than him becoming a general for the Republic military was something he could've done.

"Yeah you could say that, but I have to make a report to the Jedi council about what had gone on down there. But's it good to see you again senator and... um... try not to get shot by clankers on regular basis?"

The two shared a few more moments of talking before Raiden needed to go. Although he whispered the last thing to her.

"Well cousin, I would love to continue this conversation later on. However, at the very moment, I have work to deal with so I'll catch up to you. Besides, it was nice to see you again after dealing with droids for so long."

She agreed and told him that she was going to hold him up to it.

After the conversation he had with Padme, he entered the room containing most of the Jedi council that was not on duty right now. Some of the more famous Jedi knights such Yoda, Mace Windu, and a few others were present in the room along with both Obi Wan and Anakin were present as well.

Yoda, a very small humanoid being that's skin color was green and out of everyone was the oldest by hundreds of years old, was the first to break the pregnant silence in the room.

"Report you have Dakkar?" he asked, speaking in a manner many would find strange, but was normal to many within the council.

Raiden stood with his hands behind him, "Yes, master Yoda I have the report from what had occurred a few short hours ago in the Financial District. And I'm afraid that this is something that cannot be ignored by the council."

"Hmmm... dangerous this situation... but wait we must for the senate, decide what we do they will."

Mace Windu was a dark skinned man in his mid-forties and one of the more powerful Jedi knights in the council and compared to most, with him being first while both Raiden and Anakin were both quite powerful in their own right.

"So what had happened down there, Raiden?" Mace Windu asked.

The young man nodded. "Well around the time I arrived in the district, the enemy attack had already started and I noticed a large group of people running away that's when I saw ranks of soldiers dressed in primitive armor and armed with primitive weapons such as swords. I managed to hold off a group of them along with some other clone troopers there until the 336th Legion had set up attack squadrons and rounded what was left of the enemy forces. In the end, they came from a stone building that appeared from out of nowhere and moments later that enemy army came out of it."

Obi Wan stepped into the conversation, "If what Raiden is telling us is real, then no doubt will we have a problem within the Senate. They will no doubt want to attack where this enemy force came from, but what I don't understand is how this gate just appeared out of nowhere and out came an army with weapons from millions of years ago."

Many of the Jedi's thoughts were focused on how this gate enabled a force of that size to come through unharmed.

After some time, the meeting of the council was over and Raiden was allowed to leave after he gave the council his report. Yoda and Mace Windu remained in the room, still trying to figure out how this possible until Yoda said something.

"Afraid we must be, coming another war is, prepare we must..."

"Yes, master Yoda... but what do you think the senate will do because I do not think that most of them will be pleased to hear that there was an enemy army attacking the city. Just a few short hours ago."

The oldest Jedi in their ranks had looked outside, looking at the senate building looming in the distance.

"Hmmm... hate within the senate, there is... growing the dark side is. More hate new war brings."

Silence filled the room. Outside in the hall, Raiden was looking through the window and in the vast distance the smoke from what destruction was caused by the enemy force still was being contained by emergency services.

He didn't like it when innocent people were caught up in something that they didn't understand and with something like this happening right on the capital world of the Republic then the senate would want the military to launch a campaign to get revenge.

That isn't the case for Raiden, as a Jedi he couldn't let his emotions get the better of him and he could feel how the rest of the council felt about this situation and that was their hands were tied behind their back until the senate decides on what course of action they will do.

Regardless of it being diplomatic or a military strike on the enemy's land.

Peace.

Something that the galaxy wanted but if the last few years has shown him anything it's that this galaxy is nowhere near that right now. Violence, hate filled the hearts of those and some of the few left in the endless expanse of space that had the heart to think there was possibility for peace.

Raiden knew they were fools, even his own cousin Padme was fool to think that there was a chance to convince the CIS to peace agreements, not with General Grievous leading them now. He couldn't understand why they tried so hard.

But he knew Padme enough to know that she wanted peace after seeing what the had happened to her people when the CIS blockaded. Many starved to death, killed by the droid army and just because of this war, her people had paid the price.

And he admired her for the passion she showed to help bring an end to the war, but sometimes even talking can't fix it only combat will solve the issue at hand. Even if it sounds barbaric, that's the world they live in.

' _She's like a child with the naive dream of peace in this galaxy. Sometimes I wonder if she even truly realizes what kind of world we all live in... besides, she's dealing with the effects of being pregnant at the moment._ ' he thought to himself.

It was quite a surprise when Padme told him about the child both her and Anakin were having...

There relationship broke every barrier the Jedi knight should have, yet Anakin ignored them and is even having a child...

 **~o0o~**

 **Padme and Anakin's home**

 **Few Months Ago**

 _Raiden didn't know what to say at the moment._

 _It was one thing to hide Padme and Anakin's relationship from the rest of the Jedi council as well as their own former master. Another thing is to hide the fact that Padme, his cousin, was now going to have the child of Anakin._

 _"My god, you guys seriously want to kill me, don't you?" Raiden asked, not wanting to deal with this._

 _He wasn't upset with his cousin nor angry towards Anakin, he realized sometimes people did things by impulse. Now, these two wanted to have a family. Even if one of them was gone on the front line of a war quite a bit._

 _Especially after dealing with numerous attacks by the Separatist in order to gain an advantage in the war once again._

 _Raiden sat down on of the seats, looking at the hundreds of speeders racing through the city. The young man truly wondered what went on in this galaxy, now he needed to hide another secret, one quite difficult with Padme starting to have a belly._

 _Meaning people would be asking him who's the father._

 _A question he was not fully prepared to answer as that would mean lying to people or getting both him and Anakin into trouble with the council. Something the young Jedi knight did not want to go through at all._

 _"Raiden. I know this is difficult to keep a secret, but can you do it?" Padme asked, ever since finding out she was pregnanet, excitement filled her with the prospect of being a parent with the man she loved._

 _Sighing, "Padme... I'll try. But, there's no guarantee that things won't unravel." warned Raiden._

 _He wanted her to understand that one fact. With so many people who knew the two of them, there was only a matter of time until someone figured something was up. Raiden himself didn't know what he do if someone were to find out._

 _But he knew one thing..._

 _Padme and Anakin would be facing quite a bit of trouble, though Raiden knew he wouldn't get away without any harm._

 _Though the one person he was worried about was Obi-Wan, there was no telling if the man figured out about Padme being pregnant. Since he was a good friend of Padme, this meant complications in the future since he would be able to tell who is the father._

 _And would proceed to kill both him and Anakin._

 _The former because he hid such a thing and didn't say anything about it while the latter would suffer at the hands of the council._

 _'_ I'm such a nice person... _' thought Raiden, knowing the kind of trouble something like this presented._

 _He soon realized that he needed to go, remembering master Yoda needed to speak to him about something important. Though knowing the older Jedi knight like he did, there was some important meaning behind this meeting._

 _"Padme, Anakin, if you need anything, don't hesitate to call." he said, wanting the couple to understand he was here for them._

 _Raiden soon received a hug from Padme as she had tears in her eyes, happy that her only remaining family understands, while Anakin and Raiden's eyes met. The two Jedi knights understood what the relationship between Anakin and Padme meant._

 _And realizing what kind of problems his cousin's pregnancy meant for the two of them._

 **~o0o~**

 **Jedi Temple**

 **Present Day**

Raiden started to leave the Jedi Temple, when he got outside he saw that captain Iron and a few of his men were waiting outside a gunship. Amongst the clones were Obi Wan and Anakin, who was currently in a conversation with captain Irons and a few other clones with them.

"General, we got orders from general Windu and that was to take you and general Kenobi as well as Skywalker to the building that is currently on lock-down by our men at the moment. Sir." Iron said when Raiden showed up.

"Well what are we waiting for then. Come on sooner we get this done the sooner we can get some shut-eye cause it's been a long day for me."

Obi Wan only smiled at his former padawans laid-back nature.

"Of course, who wouldn't want to keep you up for too long, my old padawan."

Raiden only laughed, "You know me so well master..."

The three Jedi masters had boarded the gunship with captain Irons. Soon the transport was on it's way to the massive building that housed all the representatives of the worlds aligned with the Republic. To meet up with the Chancellor.

To make a decision that will change the Republic forever.

 **~o0o~**

 **Senate Building**

 **Ten Minutes Later**

The transport was nearing the Senate building. As the gunship was about to land on the platform, the three Jedi masters were greeted by Chancellor Palpetine being escorted by some of the senate guards draped in their classic blue armor as well as armed with blasters.

"Ah, you three were sent by the council to investigate the structure. I'm most pleased that you will help us understand how this gate allowed them to attack us. But I'm sure the senate will come to an agreement about what we should do."

Palpetine had stretched out his hand. He shook all three men's hands and had them walk with him.

He was man well past sixties. Once the three Jedi started following the leader of the Republic, they had traveled through much of the senate building as he remained silent throughout the entire way to his office near the top floor

After walking through the endless hallways for some time, the group had entered the Chancellor's office.

"Now, I know that is was an army using very primitive weapons. But what I need to know is how does that gate allow for them to move one-hundred thousand soldiers without as so much as being spotted by anyone until they were right on top of us."

"And now most of the senators are gathering right now for a meeting that is happening in a few hours right in which will decide what we do to counter this. Whether or not it is a peaceful or military solution. So please just figure out anything that could be of some use."

All three Jedi knights nodded and had left the man alone. Just as they left the room, two other had entered his room.

It was both senators Padme Amidala and Bail Prestor Organa had entered the room. Behind them was Jar-Jar Binks, a amphibious being that was from the planet of Naboo as well and was also a representative for this world like Padme is.

Both of them walked up to the Chancellor.

"Chancellor Palpetine, many of the senators are growing restless from the lack of action that the Republic has taken against this enemy threat that managed to get onto the planet without so much as being traced by any of our scanners."

Bail Organa voiced his thoughts to the leader of the Republic. The man in front of them remained quiet until he looked up to see them.

He moved the chair to the side and gotten up to stand by the massive window that covered the entire wall behind him. With speeders and other transports were going to and from places they needed to be at.

Organa continued speaking.

"As you are surely aware Chancellor, that land does not appear on any map."

"We also do not know what kind of geological features it has, what kind of animals inhabit it, or what kind of people live there. What is the level of their civilization? The extent of their science and technology? Their religion? Even their system of government is unknown."

Organa paused and looked over to Padme. She knew that the senate would vote on wanting to invade this enemies' land and make them pay for attacking them. And Padme had continued the explanation to him."

"In this incident, we had captured the most prisoners that the Republic has ever been able to capture, over forty-thousand men."

"And it frustrates me to use the word 'arrest'. Because this is something that neither the constitution nor any of our laws has accounted for. And in our case, since we have been at war with the CIS, who primarily use droids for armed combat with the only living beings for generals usually far away from the battle. And the Republic has not established an emergency-case law to treat them as prisoners of war. If we follow our country's present laws, they are nothing but criminals who broke the law."

Padme had paused before continuing to speak.

"In these circumstances, we should adopt a resolution that is at the level of obstinacy, and decide to consider that land a "special region" due to that gate being the reason they have traveled here."

"We should think that on the other side of the Gate is land that the Republic had not identified until now, in which our citizens live. If there is a government on the other side, we will negotiate to establish a boundary of some sort, but if they will not negotiate, we will not recognize them as an independent state. At present, they are armed terrorists who took the lives of innocent citizens and had injured military personnel that fought them."

Padme wanted peace more than anything else and starting another war would do nothing but cause the deaths of even more people.

"I recognize that some believe we should "peacefully negotiate" with them. But to do so, we would have to grant them a seat at the discussion table. How would we do that? The reality is that we have no form of correspondence with the other side of the G-"

Chancellor Palpetine had interrupted her.

"We have no choice but to make the forces on the other side of the Gate sit at the negotiating table. Even if we have to use force to pin their head down to it. And to advance the negotiations favorably, we must understand our adversary. We have been able to obtain bits of information from those captured criminals who cannot understand the words we say. But we certainly cannot rely on that."

"Someone must take action to confirm things with their own eyes and ears. For these reasons, we must tread upon the other side of the Gate. However, it will be a foray into the savage and uncivilized land which slaughtered our unresisting civilians. We need to prepare for the accompanying danger."

"First of all, there is no way we can leave our arms behind. On top of that, depending on the condition within the special region, we will consider engaging in battle. We must allow people on the scene a certain degree of flexibility to make calls about who is an enemy and who is an ally in that backward area."

Padme knew where Palpetine was going with what he was saying and this wasn't what she wanted. At all.

"I realize that members of the opposition have shared the viewpoint that there is no need to go someplace dangerous, and that we should destroy the Gate in such a way that it can never be opened again."

She tried to argue but was cut off by the Chancellor.

"But senator Amidala, can you really state definitively that everything will be settled just by closing the door?"

"From now on, the people of the Republic will have to live with the fear of not knowing where the next Gate might appear. Next time, that Gate might appear before your house, or your family. And there is also the problem of how survivors and families of the deceased will be compensated. If there is a government in the special region, and someone in that government is said to be the responsible party, we must demand a sincere apology and reparations regarding this incident, along with the extradition of that responsible party."

His voice hardened the more he spoke about wanting the other side to pay dearly for what they had done. As well as delaying his plans to eliminate both the Republic and the CIS, but with this issue he must now solve this problem before enacting his own plan.

"In the case that the other side does not comply with this, we must capture the perpetrators ourselves and pass judgement upon them, and if they have property, seize that as best we can and assign it to the bereaved families as reparations. From the perspective of those who've suffered from this incident, doing so is obvious. Accordingly, to the Republic's governing leadership has decided to dispatch an appropriate portion of the clone army to the other side of the Gate, should the senate vote upon a military strike on these people."

The Special Region Self-Defense Force Special Bill, is to be voted upon by all members of the senate in a few days time to decide on what should happen.

However, during the time after the Gate was discovered. Many of the off world companies started to pressure the Republic and has started leaking information about what is known about the Gate at the moment to the CIS due to the Republic keeping the Gate off-limits from anyone that isn't a military personnel.

Also, the Banking Clans said that the supernatural existence called the "Gate" should be managed from an international perspective. They said that while it may have appeared Coruscant, it shouldn't be controlled by just the Republic. On top of that, they publicly commented that the profits obtained from it shouldn't be monopolized.

 **~o0o~**

 **Other side of the Gate**

 **The Empire's Capital City, Senate building**

"If I may say so, this was a great disgrace. I wish to receive your Majesty's thoughts; with regard to this unprecedented heavy loss, do you intend to take any particular measures?"

Marquis Carzel, a senator and a noble, thrust out sharp words while facing the Emperor Molto Sol Augustus on his throne in the center of the parliamentary building. If the senator was within the assembly hall, he believed that speaking as such even toward the Emperor would be permitted, or even encouraged.

The hall was dimly lit.

It was a stone parliamentary building with a dignified motif, lacking fancy decorations while exuding tranquility and solemnity. Men with severe countenances sat lined up on the tiered gallery lining its round walls, surrounding the central area.

They numbered about three-hundred people. As representatives of those with the rank of imperial governor, they were the senators.

In this empire, there were several ways to become a senator. The first was to be born into a powerful family. Nobility are rare in any country, but in this giant capital city of the empire, there are so many that it's said you'll hit one if you toss a stone. Accordingly, merely being born a noble won't earn them the honorable seat of a senator.

Only members of those families prestigious enough to be called nobles among nobles are able to become senators.

But it's not as though nobles not born into powerful or prestigious families are forever unable to obtain an honorable position. The way open to them is to experience the job of a cabinet minister or to become ranked general or above in the army.

Bureaucrats are an indispensable existence for governing the empire's complex and vast administration. If they're not born into a powerful family, but are a noble and abound with talent and purpose, they have the method of choosing the path of a soldier or a bureaucrat. In the army and bureaucracy, what they ask for is practical skill.

Even if they're the third son of a family that's nobility in name only, if they just have ability, the will to work, and good luck, it's possible to advance on that path.

The six types of cabinet minister are prime minister, domestic minister, financial minister, agricultural minister, foreign affairs minister, and palace minister.

Those who choose the path of a soldier or a bureaucrat, experience the job of a cabinet minister or general, and then retire are automatically given the job of senator later. By the way, in the army, even commoners can ascend in rank.

In other words, when they become an officer they will be conferred the rank of knight, and as their rank rises it's even possible for them to be granted nobility.

Marquis Carzel was a born into a family with the rank of baron, which is not very high among nobles. From there, he built up a career, worked as a cabinet minister, and obtained a senate seat. Senators who obtained their position with great effort like that tend to take their status and responsibilities very seriously. In other words, they get carried away.

People like that tend to be considered a nuisance by their peers, and the more they're treated like that, the more they'll speak sharply and aggressively.

"It was evidently a mistake to kidnap a few of that foreign country's citizens and determine that cowardly people with no fighting spirit lived there."

He pressed the Emperor for an answer, saying that they should have taken more time to scout, to have perhaps challenged them with diplomatic negotiations to determine how manageable they would be.

Certainly, the current situation was horrible.

About forty-three percent of the Empire's military had been wiped out in that expedition. Although recovering wasn't impossible, it would require a large amount of funds and time. The more pressing matter was the need to preserve the hegemony of the Empire using the remaining sixty-seven percent. But how?

In the three decades since Emperor Molto took the throne, he had utilized militaristic politics.

He had quarreled with neighboring countries as well as domestic lords and various houses, using his might as both a threat and a means to settle those disputes, letting the Empire force peace and harmony upon everyone. There was no way to make every country show allegiance to him other than using that overwhelming military strength, and he destroyed everyone who dared to rise against him.

His overwhelming force had done nothing but conceal the animosity that the lords held toward the Empire. The Empire had been permitted to behave proudly and arrogantly because of that military power.

But now, having lost the majority of that overwhelming military force upon which his hegemony rested, how would the foreign countries, lords, and various houses who had been putting up with the Empire all this time act?

Marquis Carzel, a representative with a liberal attitude toward the Empire, fluttered his robe-like tyuga as he swept his hands through the air and rose his voice into a question.

"Your Majesty! How does your Majesty the Emperor intend to lead this country?"

When Marquis Carzel finished his speech as such and took his seat, the Emperor gradually leaned his throned body slightly forward in order to convey a sense of stateliness. His gaze unwavering, he directly faced the man who had criticized him.

"Marquis... I surmise your sentiment. It is true that due to these losses, the Empire's military predominance has, however temporarily, faded. Are you unable to sleep at night in fear that the foreign countries and lords will bare their hidden antipathy and simultaneously revolt with pointed spears, marching upon the imperial capital? What a pitiful state."

The severe assembly hall's atmosphere was disrupted by the scorning mutters of those who heard the Emperor's ridicule-like words.

"Senators, I wish for you to remember the battle against the Aktek that took place two hundred and fifty years ago. Having received the report that the entire army had fallen, how did our great predecessors conduct themselves? Do you recall the words of the women who rebuked the senators who had lost their courage and pride and begun to consider a peace that was equivalent to surrender?"

He soon continued speaking about the story that shaped their nation's history.

"The story that those brave women rolled up their skirts and said 'What of fifty or sixty thousand losses? We can give birth to that many as often as we like.' needs no introduction. If you peruse the history of the Empire, this level of crisis has arisen often. Each time, our Empire's Emperor, Senate, and citizens have united to fight against the hardship, and ended up expanding even more."

The Emperor's words echoed the history of the Empire.

It was something that those meeting in the senate understood without having to be reminded.

"War is not a series of endless victories," the emperor stated, "So do not inquire about the responsibility for this battle. When the defeat occurred, what forced responsibility onto the commanders was the loss of their subordinates. I'd rather not believe it, but is there someone here who would keep wasting time judging others up until the imperial capital is besieged by foreign armies?"

The senators shook their heads in response to the Emperor's question.

If no one can be held responsible, the Emperor cannot be held responsible either. A simple rule which has stuck by for so long.

Carzel clicked his tongue upon realizing that the Emperor had skillfully avoided taking any blame. If he continued to press with questions, he would be labeled a coward, and in this atmosphere he would even be viewed as pointlessly judgmental.

The Emperor soon continued speaking, "For this expedition, skilled soldiers had been assembled, experienced mages had been prepared, and especially brutal beings such as orcs and goblins had been selected. Plentiful supplies had been arranged, training had been executed, and they had been led by a excellent commander."

Then, he took a moment to pause before making one last statement about the force they sent in, "You might say there could be no greater battle capability. A commander, a hundred commanding officers, and soldiers who should have put great effort into accomplishing their duty."

He soon sighed, "And yet, it took seven days."

Many of the senators were horrified to see the kind of damage done to their army, where men had lost limbs in the most horrific ways possible.

Soon some of the senators spoke amongst each other until the emperor's voice made everyone focus their attention on them.

"In a mere seven days since the Gate had opened-if you count from when the enemy began their full-scale counterattack, two days-our army had been destroyed. It seems that most of the officers had died or become the enemy's prisoners. We could only say that 'it seems', because very few people returned alive." he said.

Then the emperor spoke of the most painful part of the loss, "The 'Gate' has been taken by the enemy. We cannot even approach Alnus Hill upon which the Gate is located in an attempt to close it, because it is completely controlled by the enemy on the other side. To reclaim it, we would need to attack with thousands of cavalry. But Alnus Hill is covered in corpses, and there is a literal pool of blood at its foot."

A voice spoke up, voicing their own opinion on the situation growing within the room.

"Do you understand the greatness of the enemy's weapons? Bang bang! When faraway enemy foot soldiers make this sound, our side bleeds and falls. I have never seen such an amazing magical skill. All that could be seen were the bright blue lights burning through their armor..."

Senator Godasen, a mage, agitatedly spoke of how it appeared when they made contact with the enemy.

He and the force he had led had been mowed down like dry leaves being swept away, unable to climb even halfway up the hill. He had suddenly noticed that he was surrounded by silence, the only person still moving. He recalled how the corpses of men and horses had laid on the ground as far as he could see.

The Emperor closed his eyes as he spoke.

"The enemy has already trespassed to this side. They are presently gathering and building a stronghold around the Gate, but they will eventually begin a genuine invasion. We have no choice but to stand against both the enemy from the other world on Alnus Hill and the surrounding countries."

"It is right to fight!"

Earl Podawan, a bald aged knight, stood and bowed to the Emperor, responding in support of war.

"It's exactly because we are hard pressed that bold actions are the only way to break through to a solution. Let us gather the entire army which has been spread across the Empire, and destroy any traitors or vassal states who defy us! With that momentum, smash the enemies from the other world at Alnus! And then, once again invade the other side of the Gate!"

The senators jeered at his reckless idea, saying "If we could do that, we wouldn't have any problems" while shaking their heads and shrugging their shoulders. If they were to gather the entire army, they would be neglecting both public order and defenses. The assembly hall become noisy with their simultaneous harsh words.

Podawan replied that if they just massacre the rebels, enslave the women and children, and turn the cities into wastelands such that no one could live there, there would be no need to worry about anyone opposing them from there... and similar proposals that were far too extreme. Although they seemed unrealistic, there had been previous such offenses in the history of the Empire.

At the time the Empire was smaller and surrounded by enemies, whenever they captured an enemy nation, they would enslave its people, destroy the cities, burn the forests and salt the fields to make the land a barren wasteland, ensuring their security by changing the environment into an empty area.

"Even if we did that, just how would be defeat the enemies at Alnus? Do you think we should utilize all our forces for a second showing of Godasen's performance?"

In response to the voice that had come from the corner of the assembly hall, Earl Podawan revealed a sour expression while speaking uncomfortably.

"Uh... Then... We should gather up all the soldiers of all the vassal states. Get them all without accepting any complaints. If you do that, the numbers alone will reach over a hundred thousand. Even weak soldiers can serve as protection against ranged weapons. Use them as a shield, rush onto the hill and then march upon the capital!"

"You think that they would follow orders obediently!?"

"In the first place, what excuse would you use to have them deliver the soldiers? Should we honestly say 'we lost half our army, so please send your soldiers'? If we do that, they'll take us lightly."

Carzel loathed Earl Podawan for pulling the discussion in various pointless directions with his impractical ideas.

The back-and-forth argument between the hawks and doves that he couldn't bear to hear began, and the assembly hall entered the mood of collapsing into discord.

"Then what would you say we do!?"

"You stubborn war-minded fool!"

The senators had lost their composure and heated up enough to be on the verge of fighting.

Time passed without achieving anything. Although the few who had kept their reason realized that this couldn't be allowed to continue, they were unable to settle the disordered conference.

Amid this, Emperor Molto stood up.

Seeing that the Emperor was about to speak, the senators who had been insulting one another closed their mouths and became quiet.

"Although he spoke somewhat recklessly, there is merit in Earl Podawan's suggestions."

Upon receiving those words, Podawan bowed to the Emperor respectfully.

The senators who had respected the Emperor's dignity regained their calm. They prepared to listen to what the Emperor would say next.

"Now, it is a matter of what we should do. Will we silently watch the situation become even worse? That is one option. However, I do not wish for that. In this situation, a fight cannot be avoided. We should adopt Earl Podawan's proposal and gather soldiers from the vassal states and surrounding countries. Send an envoy to each nation. We request the dispatchment of reinforcements to repel the bandits from the other world who await their chance to raid the Falmat continent. We will rally this Allied Federation of Armed Forces, and attack Alnus Hill."

"The Allied Federation of Armed Forces?"

The senators stirred upon hearing the Emperor's words.

Two hundred years ago, for the sake of opposing the aggression of the great empire formed by the equestrian tribes to the east, the continent's various kingdoms allied and fought against it. They had fought amongst each other until then, but the attitude of "we shouldn't fight each other when a different people is invading" prevailed. Each nation's royalty and knights who should have been sworn enemies lined up their horses and mutually helped one another as they faced the different group. In the present day, it had become a heroic tale recited in verse.

"If it's like that, it will certainly become a just cause."

"But still, that's a bit..."

Indeed. In the first place, weren't they the ones who had opened up and invaded through the Gate? The Emperor's words flew in the face of that. To initiate the attack but then appeal for reinforcements from each nation by saying it was "to defend against the invaders from the other world", wasn't there a limit to shamelessness? ...No one dared to say that.

Be that as it may, if they said that "not just the Empire, the entire Falmat continent is being targeted", each country ought to send reinforcements. In short, it's not a matter of what the reality is, it's a matter of what is reported.

"Y-Your Majesty. Isn't the base of Alnus Hill overflowing with the bodies of men and horses?"

At Marquis Carzel's question, Emperor Molto built up his claims.

"I pray for certain victory. But there is no certainty in war. And so, it is possible that the Allied Federation of Armed Forces will be destroyed. If that happens, it would be sorrowful. If it comes to that, the Empire will lead the various countries as it has throughout history, unite together, and face the invaders."

If every nearby country lost their army, then the Empire's predominance would not change relative to them.

"These are my countermeasures for this state of affairs. Are they acceptable, Marquis Carzel?"

The Emperor's decision had been delivered.

Carzel wore a dumbfounded expression as he considered the fate of the officers and soldiers of the Allied Federation of Armed Forces.

Aside from Carzel and the doves, the surrounding people bowed their heads silently to the Emperor. They then solemnly began the work of sending the envoys to each state.

 **~o0o~**

 **Coruscant, Financial District**

 **Few Days Later**

Flying through the air was a gunship, currently carrying Raiden along with a few other clone troopers as they were to protect a few language specialist who were hired by the Republic to figure out what kind of runes were engraved on the ancient gate which the enemy army used to attack the city.

"Sir! We're closing in on the gate!" captain Iron said, letting Raiden know.

Nodding, the Jedi knight simply wondered what was going to happen to the enemy general as well as his soldiers. The Senate were planning on meeting within a few days to vote on the decision on whether or not to attack the nation which lies across the gate.

One that could change the fate of the war with the CIS entirely.

However, there were some individuals such as Padme who wants the Republic to settle this issue peacefully with both this new enemy as well as the CIS. Though there were others within the Senate who wants to continue this war and force them to.

"This war... it's only get worse." Raiden muttered to himself.

Though if there was one thing he was certain of, this gate wasn't of this world, that much he could tell.

He felt as if there was another world which lies on the other side. And one which didn't stand a chance, and after seeing what kind of weapons and technology this enemy army used against them, it was only fair to assume they've never seen such weapons lime theirs.

' _Let's hope things don't go south these next few weeks..._ ' thought Raiden.

Just as the gunship was about to land, he looked towards the Senate building in the distance. There was something which concerned him, he felt like there was someone watching him from that building. He couldn't explain it, it was just there.

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 4: AND THE RESULTS?**_

* * *

 **So yeah, here's the third chapter and this one definitely has a change as Padme and my character are family, something I wanted to try out.**

 **Besides, the next chapter is going to be completely new as we see the Senate from the Star Wars universe argue about this. With Padme going to be the driving force towards avoiding this war... until a certain chancellor goes... 'No, no, no.'**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed and I'll see you guys next time.**


	4. Chapter 4

" ** _It is enough that the people know there was an election. The people who cast the votes decide nothing. The people who count the votes decide everything._** " - Joseph Stalin

* * *

 ** _News of the Gate!_**

 _After repelling the attack by the unknown enemy, the Senate of the Galactic Republic is been scheduled to meet. To decided on whether or not they should send an invasion force to deal with this matter quickly._

 _There has appeared a divide between senators as they do not want to start another conflict, yet do not want to leave this attack against the Republic unpunished!_

 _Meanwhile, Jedi knights Anakin Skywalker and Raiden Dakkar have been assigned to watch over the vote. Both Jedi realizing the kind of problems which will break out between those within the goVarnment on this matter._

 _It is only a matter of time until something happens..._

 **~o0o~**

 **Star Destroyer - Dark Knight**

 **Few Days Later**

General Grievous was more than upset at the moment, he was furious!

After he manage to escape the destruction of his capital ship, the general soon learned of a secret from his master; Lord Sidious. A gate unlike anything ever seen in the galaxy's recent history had been discovered on the planet of Coruscant.

While the portal valued very little to the general, or rather leader of the CIS now. There was also finding out about the death of Count Dokuu, it would cause quite a repercussion throughout the leaders who funded their forces.

To find out that the Sith who lead their military forces, was now dead.

Such a thing would only accelerate the destruction of the CIS, but there was also the matter of organizing their remaining forces in a last stand effort against any Republic attacks aimed at finishing them off.

' _I must reach Utapau before those Jedi scums do, it would destroy our chance to win this war... somehow._ ' thought the general.

Even he was beginning to realize the end was near, something he couldn't accept. After being hailed as the hero of his people for fighting back against the creatures his people called the Huk, beings who enslaved their race and whom they had been at war with for quite some time.

It was only until recently the general was able to remember his past.

Something his master allowed to happen.

There were numerous faces of those the general led into battle. Yet, so many of those faces made the general feel anguish unlike anything else. To know his people were either all dead, or enslaved to those creatures made him crush the arm rest of the seat he was on.

All those he was friends with, the men he lead into battle...

Many of whom the general lost contact with after being forced into leading the droid armies of the CIS.

Though it was his very past that shaped his future, leading to him being selected by Count Dokuu himself. From there, he became the most feared and ruthless commander in the CIS and brought death and destruction in his wake.

Causing the Republic to suffer heavy casualties, either in victory or loss, it didn't matter.

It was this very mentality of inflicting as many casualties as possible on the enemy's side which has allowed for Grievous to survive as long as he has.

Looking through the glass of the bridge, he was currently using the nearby fleet to heads towards Utapau and defend it. He was starting to consolidate and proritize the worlds of value over those that don't provide him with anything to help salvage what's left of the droid army.

As the droids went to and from, the general's time was filled with how he could kill the Jedi knights who stand in his way.

One of the droids approached the hulking general, wondering if it should bother the being. However, it's programming overruled the current concept of fear which built up inside the droid and spoke up, "Um, sir, we have a message coming through." it said.

Grievous turned around, "Who is it?" the general practically growled at it.

The droid merely said it was someone from the CIS.

Walking across the bridge, Grievous walked to the communication's table and saw the figures of the InterGalactic Banking clans.

" _General Grievous! Why hasn't Dooku contacted us yet!?_ " one of them asked.

He smashed his hands on the table, "If you can wait a moment! Then I can explain," he said and after a moment of silence, "Well then, the bad news is that Dokuu was killed at the hands of Skywalker and we have to move on if we are to survive this war." Grievous said.

Immediately, all the members of the CIS seemed horrified at the news of knowing the Sith Lord was dead.

Even Grievous himself felt a bit discouraged when hearing the words come from what remains of his mouth, but it was the truth and the truth he would accept.

It was time for them to move on and begin moving towards finding victory against the Republic, though the chances of them winning seemed more and more slim each day. Hearing the defeats taking place across the Outer Rim where Republic forces are beating them.

Quite a hopeless situation really.

" _General! Where is the other Sith?! Isn't he supposed to be meeting you on Utapau?_ " one of the CIS leaders asked, not bothering to hide the panic in his voice.

The general knew who they were talking about. Towards the recent months leading up to the attack which almost allowed them to kidnap chancellor Palpatine from the Republic, he was introduced to a Sith, one trained by Lord Sidious in secrecy.

A psychotic man who's skills with a lightsaber were unlike anything the general had ever seen.

While he was given assignments of leading small, covert missions against the Republic, in battle against other Jedi Knights, he's killed every single one which has crossed his path.

Just like the general himself, the Sith kept a record by using his lightsaber and marking his own skin, a crude way to remember those he's killed in battle. Such demented thinking even unnerves the general himself.

Never has he seen an individual of this nature, though the Sith wouldn't be able to best the general.

On the few times they've sparred, it was always his quick-thinking and cybernetics which has allowed the general to beat the Sith. However, to face him without such advantages would be nearly suicidal to him.

However...

The general only was informed when the Sith would be arriving, never is he told about how to keep track of him.

"Unfortunately, the Sith isn't here and from what I've been told, he will arrive to Utapau around the same time as myself. However, as for what we're to do against the Republic... it seems some news has made it's way to us. One which should give us time." the general explained.

As he said this, many of the CIS leaders looked relieved hearing this.

" _What is it general?_ " one of them asked.

A soft chuckle escaped the general's mouth, "It seems like the Republic has a new enemy to toy with for the time being. One which will surely give us time in order to figure out a plan against the Republic."

Indeed, the general was going to be more than happy to use another faction as bait to lure the Republic away from them for the time being.

Bait, which he knew, wouldn't last all that long if what Lord Sidious told him was true. Then he needed to make his moves quickly and quietly before the enemy struck them before they were ready to go.

It was now or never for the CIS...

One which the general was fully intended on using.

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 4: And the Results?**

After nearly a few days, both Anakin Skywalker and Raiden Dakkar were finally allowed to travel to the Senate building. The two were assigned to watch over the vote as they knew the situation would eventually decided on either war or peace.

Would the senate let this issue go or would they send in an army?

Such a question needed to be vote on, it couldn't be a simple matter decided upon by the chancellor and the Jedi order. Many of whom abstained from taking arms in such an invasion as the war with the CIS appeared to be finally nearing it's end.

An end which has been costly.

The Clone wars with the CIS had lasted little over three years, costing lives of those from across the galaxy.

Secrets were exposed unlike any before it, from finding out that there was a Sith within the senate to even finding out enemies thought dead were coming back to haunt the Jedi order. Especially for someone like Obi-Wan when he found out that Darth Maul was found to be alive.

A difficult fight against both him as well as his older brother; Savage Opress.

Though the biggest secret still eluded the Republic, who was it they thought they killed back on Naboo all those years ago; the apprentice or the master.

Not one piece of evidence could be found to prove who they were.

And so, they let it die and focused on winning the war against the CIS. However, the Jedi order all felt the shift in the war. They all felt the war take a darker turn with the events that lead to the attack on Coruscant recently.

Still the focus for individuals like Raiden and Anakin were on the vote happening in about an hour from now.

They soon approached one of the landing pads, Raiden taking careful aim on not to damage anything as they both knew how stingy the senate commandos were about making sure things stayed in order.

Once they felt the speeder touch the ground, both Jedi knight got out of the vehicle and started making their way inside the building.

Inside it was chaos, people were walking about and many of them were senators. All of them preparing for what could potentially be one of the biggest votes in the history of the Republic as they would be considering on going to war with another nation across this gate.

Many were also anxious as they would need to decide on whether or not to send in an army.

Raiden himself was only a Jedi, he tended to stay away from politicians as they always made the young man nervous. It wouldn't matter if they were a innocent looking old man or a beautiful young woman, they were all the same to him.

While the only exception to him was his cousin Padme.

She was the only who he was comfortable around, though it was most likely because they were family. A strange family to sat the least since they acted more as siblings than cousins. With Raiden acting like the older brother to Padme while she had her moments.

"What do you will happen?" Anakin asked out of the blue.

The relationship between the Jedi knights was... interesting to say the least. Most members of the council said the two acted like brothers more than anything else, making it easier for Raiden to accept the secret marriage between him and his cousin.

Including her being pregnant with their child, something Raiden still was coming to grips with.

He was going to be an uncle in a few weeks time and they managed to lie, saying the father was someone from Naboo like her. Though anytime she described Anakin, it was using similar traits which nearly made Raiden have a heart attack.

Nothing apparently affects his cousin because it didn't matter to her, whether they were a Jedi or someone she was friends with, she didn't stop mentioning Anakin.

Though it did make Raiden wonder how it felt to love someone. But, because he became a Jedi knight the concept of love was something they abstained themselves from. For his brother-in-law to break this rule, it must have been a special feeling.

"I don't know Anakin. All I know is that whatever the Senate decides, we'll pretty much be paying the consequences. That's all I'm sure of." Raiden said, trying to remain calm in this situation.

He never felt comfortable walking through this building.

For all the times he's walked these halls, it may be seen as a place where diplomacy was done, there was something else here.

A cold, dreadful feeling for someone like Raiden.

He was one of the more powerful Jedi knights in the order's ranks. However, that also meant he was also far more sensitive around areas with those with dark intention or anything of that nature. Something he was getting used to.

Not here though...

This building always felt like a place where the Jedi shouldn't be. As if the dark side was more present here, like it dominated the building.

Shaking off the feeling, the two soon walked by numerous senators until they reached the location of Padme's office within the building. Once they reached the door, Anakin pressed a button and the door opened, revealing a familiar droid to the two warriors.

Near Padme's desk was a gold plated human shaped droid, one which went by the name of C-3PO.

The droid greeted the two Jedi knights, "Ah, master Skywalker and Dakkar! How pleasant it is to see you once again!"

Anakin was the first to greet it, "It's nice to see too C-3PO."

He approached the desk, where Padme was currently sitting as she was looking through various footage of the captured enemy general speaking, and since they manage to crack the language barrier, they were able to learn just a bit about who it was they were fighting.

Though the general didn't reveal much in terms of what nation he came from, or how the gate, just a few bits and pieces of personal information along with battle plans.

It was all he had to offer.

Something Padme wasn't buying. However, she stopped what she was doing and focused on two important men in her lives; her cousin and her husband.

"Always working, aren't you?" Anakin said while shaking his head.

"Urakto borarir is jaon'yc," Raiden interjected, "Maybe you should learn a thing or two yourself Anakin. With all the experience you have... maybe seeing how Padme does work might do some good for you. Especially after seeing the crazy ideas you've done."

"You do know I don't speak Mandalorian Raiden?" deadpanned Anakin.

Soon the two Jedi knights laughed, while Padme herself shook her head with a smile on her face.

"Of course I do Anakin, but I just felt like confusing the hell out of you." Raiden said with a smirk, making Anakin sigh.

"Whatever. So, uh, how long until the meeting starts with all the senators?" Anakin asked, "Cause they look impatient as hell right now. Most of them were walking around, I get that this meeting is huge and could seriously impact the Republic... but why act as if this was starting another conflict."

Padme sighed, "Because what we're deciding is essentially the equivalent of declaring war on another world." she said.

The young senator knew her husband wouldn't entirely understand, but deciding on unleashing their military force is something the senate needs to decide on. There wouldn't be a secret meeting between the Jedi and chancellor.

It was an issue everyone needs to voice their opinion on.

And the young woman knew it was certainly going to be a tumultuous period as every senator wants to let the Republic know how they feel about the current situation at hand. Whether or not military force was needed, it was important to let everyone speak up.

"Besides, from what I've been hearing from the other senators... most of them appear to be mixed. Some like senator Organa and myself would rather have peace, but others have been trying to make the case for action." Padme said.

She knew what was at stake here.

A chance to avoid another conflict which would end the Republic and drown them in debit. They're already having trouble keeping up with payments when it comes to the clone army they use in the fight against the droid army, but for this to happen would only further destroy them.

"I could never politicians sometimes, you guys always talk about things, but when it comes to realizing it may never... you guys are pretty stubborn. And that's saying something." Raiden said, adding in his own opinion.

His cousin was an example of someone he didn't entirely understand at times.

Sure, there were times where she came up with crazy-ass plans to save the day. From volunteering for a mission to steal the data on a droid factory to even being caught in the middle of a battle between the Republic and CIS, Raiden wondered where she got such ideas from.

One of the biggest mystery to him was... how has she survived this long?

Putting those thoughts in the back of his head, soon the door opened behind them. Walking into the room was a man who looked to be his forties with black hair and dark brown eyes, an individual who Raiden and Anakin have met in the past.

"Senator Organa! I wasn't expecting to see until the meeting started." Padme stated, as she walked up to the older man and greeted him.

The senator merely smiled, "It's nice to see you Padme. Same can be said for the two Jedi knights as well. Skywalker and Dakkar, it's nice to see you two are in good health."

Both Jedi knights returned the man's greeting. Realizing that they should leave, the two soon started making their way towards the door until senator Organa called out to them, more specifically Anakin.

"Ah! Skywalker! Before the meeting starts, the chancellor has requested an audience with you in his office at this moment." senator Organa said to the Jedi.

The Jedi was a bit confused, but he accepted the request nonetheless. Once they left the room. Anakin told Raiden he would see him later on. After Anakin left, Raiden walked to the edge and looked down to see the massive space which would house the senators.

A large sphere-shaped room with platforms which can move around and allow for certain members of the audience to move around and speak to others.

Though it was built in mind to hold hundreds of senators from worlds aligned with the Republic.

' _Let's hope this meeting goes well._ ' Raiden thought, wanting to get this day over with. It's been a long day for him and something like sleep felt really good, but as Jedi knight, he needed to perform his duty.

To an order he trust and one that's never steered him wrong...

 **~o0o~**

 **Sentate Building**

 **X Minutes Later**

It was time...

Raiden could see the platforms of the room starting to fill up, along with the increasing amount of noise. Something about seeing this many people from other worlds across the galaxy was strange to say the least.

He watched from one of the viewing platforms overlooking the room.

"Nice view, isn't it?"

Next to him appeared Anakin, who came back from speaking with the chancellor about whatever it was. Though Raiden didn't ask because it was none of his concern to ask what was spoken between his cousin-in-law and the leader of the Republic.

"They all just started didn't they?" Anakin asked.

Raiden nodded.

Soon the two Jedi knights started listening as they saw the familiar leader of the Republic appearing before everyone. He stood on a platform in the middle of the room, letting everyone know the kind of position he was in.

"People of the Republic! I have order this meeting due to a recent event, one which has caught the interest of many," the chancellor's voice was heard, "Not long ago, the Coruscant came under attack by an unknown enemy, and one which has never been seen before."

The room soon broke out with panic, fear, and other emotions of the sort.

"Order!"

Next to the chancellor was a blue humanoid being whose name was Mas Amedda, known as Palpatine's right hand man. He was known for keeping order whenever there was panic, or shouting matches that broke out.

"Thank you Mas." Palpatine said.

He soon took a moment before continuing, "As you know, we've repelled the attack and have investigated the other side of this gate by sending in probes to find out all we can about this world. The only real information we can find is that there is an.. empire."

Some of the senators looked ready to make their point until Palpatine stopped, "However, that is all we know. From the men we've captured as well as the general who lead this force, they haven't told us anything about their world and have been quite... difficult to work with, to say the least."

Then it was here one the senators spoke up, "That is exactly why we should try to make peace with these people. There is no telling what kind of people they are, maybe this attack was merely something done out of desperation! We ourselves have done the same with Geonosis."

Once the senator stopped speaking, a few others looked to be in agreement with him.

"Senator Varn," chancellor Palpatine called out, "While I appreciate your concern, we must look at this issue with both sides of the coin. We can't let such a deed go unpunished as well as making sure not to start another war while we're still at war with the Confederacy of Independent Systems."

"But we have no idea if there are more of these... 'gates', as you called them, on Coruscant. Wouldn't it be better to prevent such a conflict where citizens can be in danger on a daily basis, the amount of fear and hysteria would destroy us." Senator Varn retorted.

The two Jedi knights continued to watch the debate go on for some time now.

It was amazing how long it was taking these politicians to come to an agreement on something this important. Sure, there were going to be people from both sides as there are those who want war with this faction while others want peace.

A simple fact many like Raiden accepted.

However, what was going in front of him was nothing more than people arguing.

What kind of senate was this? These people were speaking as if they knew what the horrors of war looked like. It's true some of them have seen their planets ravaged by the battles waged by the Republic and CIS, but they've usually escaped before anything happened to them.

Leaving behind their world for safety on Coruscant.

Raiden and many other Jedi knights were spread thin across the galaxy dealing with these issues of protection and leading the clone army into battle. For them to have to deal with senators and what they want to do to save their worlds was a pain in the ass, to put it lightly.

One would have been the senator representing Ryloth; Orn Free Taa

He held no respect for people and simply wanted to become as wealthy and as powerful as he could.

Both him and Anakin had dealt with the man on separate occasions. One was when Raiden was sent in along with a fleet of Republic cruisers to break through a blockade, which was starving the people of that world. However, he was also sent in to save a fellow Jedi knight leading a force of clone troopers in defense of the planet.

Jedi knight Ima-Gun Di.

An individual who fought to the death to give the Twi'leks more time.

The man was honored by the Jedi order for sacrificing himself to do what was right. Many within the order appreciated what his clone troopers had done as well, respecting the kind of courage the soldiers had for fighting alongside their general until the very end.

More times than not, the sacrifices which the clones have made in the past, they have always made it for the good of the Republic.

To Raiden, the clones had more of a heart than the very senators here today. They always have been, especially after seeing them in battle and the missions they've been assigned to. Something which Raiden and many others in the Jedi order appreciate.

Especially Jedi knights like Raiden and Anakin.

For them, they always treated their men as if they were brothers.

Soon another voice entered the conversation, one which both Raiden and Anakin have been waiting for quite some time now. A person who wanted the galaxy to feel peace for once, after thousands of years worth of conflict, she wanted nothing more than to see a few years where death, destruction, didn't happen.

The reality was peace could never happen...

Or, so thought Raiden. He's seen the kind of place this galaxy was, and the idea of peace was nothing more than a dream. Something which can never be achieved with the kind of personalities roaming around.

Trouble was bound to follow.

Raiden went back to listening to the endless debates between senators until Padme started speaking.

"Senators of the Republic! I ask of you not to consider invading this land, there is still so much we do not know about them. How can we attack someone when there is no evidence pointing towards them being the same people." Padme reasoned.

Once again senator Varn spoke up, "Senator Amidala, there is evidence which tells us that these people have been preparing for an invasion of Coruscant for some time now. The enemy general which was captured by Jedi general Raiden Dakkar and his legion of clone troopers, has mentioned scouts."

It was here the other senators spoke amongst each other, wondering if that kind of information was valid.

The senator merely smiled, "Ah yes! It is true that the enemy general mentioned this," he looked around the large room, "He talked about his nation sending scouts months prior to this invasion, they assumed the city was defenseless and how wrong these... savages were."

Everyone felt the cold shiver when he called this other nation savages. While people like Raiden merely raised an eyebrow to the words the senator was sprouting.

This was what he was talking about.

People like this senator Varn made Raiden uncomfortable with those he didn't know in the circles of the politics. His cousin was the only person he trusted in such a place and now, he had a prime example for people to understand why the senate couldn't be trusted.

' _Most of these people are nothing more than pigs wanting to fatten themselves up..._ ' Raiden thought bitterly.

"Senator Varn, do you not understand the current position of the Republic. We are still at war with the Confederacy and still trying to resolve the issues involving this conflict." Padme stated.

Padme soon asked a question many were thinking, "How can you think war with another nation is going to solve anything?"

A question which left everyone within the room to decided for themselves. After a while many other senators added in their own opinions about the current situations, making Raiden believe that there was a divide growing in the senate. It was between those who wanted peace and those who simply wanted to protect themselves from the danger throughout the galaxy.

Such a divide has been noticed by those within the Jedi order, including Raiden.

The meeting went on for hours as the senate argued as to what to do, with the two Jedi knights watching on. Curious as to where this decision might go, soon the conversation was turned in the favor of those who wanted to invade when one piece of evidence was brought in.

It was the general they captured some time ago.

After understand his language, they made it possible for people to know what he was saying. To hear what the general said was unbelievable. Knowing that this invasion was truly in the works for quite some time frightened the Republic, the man even mentioned the idea of others spread across their world.

Not the one which the Republic, Confederacy, and many mores, existed within, but in a world far different than their own.

Many senators were now contemplating on what to do since hearing this information. Even Raiden tried his best to understand what the possibility of multiple portals could do, the same thought was shared by Anakin as well as other senators.

"So I guess they're coming to a decision..." muttered Raiden.

Now more than ever, the senate shifted towards a direction unlike any Raiden had ever seen. It wasn't about whether or not to invade this new enemy, it was about what kind of message they wanted to send to this enemy.

A message Raiden would need to deliver...

' _Let's hope things go... right, to say the least._ ' thought Raiden.

 **~o0o~**

 **Senate Building**

 **Two Days Later**

Chancellor Palpatine sat in his office, contemplating on what his next move would be. After getting the senate to invade this new world through the gate, however the issues which remain surround those who wanted the Republic to find a peaceful way to end this.

So foolish those senators are, thought the Sith Lord.

Being the leader of the Republic has allowed for him to destroy the both the Republic and Jedi order. Nearly a thousand years it took for the plan to work, but it finally is coming to fruition as the Jedi knight Anakin Skywalker seemed ready for him to manipulate him.

It was the only way for the plan to succeed, to use one of the most powerful members of the Jedi order to destroy them.

How ironic for the savior of the force to soon become the destroyer of the Jedi order?

The Sith Lord couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

Though it disgusted him having to work with those senators on a continuous basis, listening to their endless dribbles about peace in the galaxy. For him, the only thing he saw was the destruction of the Jedi would allow for the Sith to rule the galaxy once more.

Just as they did years ago...

However, the Sith Lord knew that before the plan could fully swing into action, he needed to tie loose ends. Ones which would hinder the progress, many of them being the senators who wanted peace over conflict.

It was time to rid the galaxy of the fools representing them.

Ones who didn't understand what peace was. Both the Republic and Confederacy were practically children who were fighting because of things one did not like, resulting in a conflict which was tearing the galaxy a part.

Now was the time to bring them together and with the Jedi order lost and confused, it was time to strike while the iron was hot.

Pulling up a communication device, Lord Sidious contacted a secret unit of clones he had asked to be created in secrecy. Ones which would carry out the operations that needed a more... refine touch than their other brothers could do.

"Commander Model, I believe it is time to clean up the loose ends." Palpatine said.

The hologram in front of him showed a clone trooper in black armor, and was armed with advanced weaponry. This unit was one which Palpatine was most proud to see, one which would become the knife that would stab the Republic from behind.

"Yes my Lord, it will be done." the clone commander replied.

Once the man was left in his office by himself, he began to smile as he faced the view of the skyscrapers rising towards the stars...

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 5: INVASION**_

* * *

 **Welp that's this chapter and I hope you guys enjoyed it.**

 **It took a bit of writing, but I'm pretty happy with as well as what I've written so far in this story. As for the clone soldiers you saw above, yeah... those guys are the early variation in my story of what would be the death troopers of the Empire later on in the Stars War history.**

 **Next chapter would be the invasion, so just wait!**

 **See ya guys later! And tune in for the next chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

" ** _The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his._** " George S. Patton

* * *

 _ **INVASION!**_

 _It has been over a month since this new enemy had launched a massive attack on the Republic capital!_

 _With the senate choosing to launch a military attack against this brand new faction unknown to the Republic. And the Jedi council has entrusted this military campaign to both Jedi knights Raiden Dakkar and Obi Wan Kenobi._

 _Within the course of that month, the legions of clone troopers under the command of the two general were brought to Coruscant and were massing for an attack similar to those of Geonosis and Ryloth._

 _War was coming to a land that has never met an army as strong as the Grand Army of the Galactic Republic, a force which was the only military capable of fighting the droid army on equal footing in battle._

 _However, both Jedi masters Yoda and Mace Windu suspect that there is a greater force at work here and is casting a shadow over the Republic and the war with the droid army itself._

 **~o0o~**

 **Coruscant, Jedi Temple**

 **Two Weeks Later**

Inside a wing of the Jedi temple, Raiden stood within the same room as Mace Windu and Obi-Wan. All of them were currently going over the battle plan which he and Obi-Wan had been coming up with in recent weeks. It was decided that they would be the ones to lead to this attack as the senate voted on this matter and outcome was all, but inevitable.

Many within the senate reacted the way the Jedi Council had suspected they would.

Enraged, furious, irritated, and many more emotions of that nature were felt.

With these emotions swelling within many, there was only one option for them; attack. It was the only way to make this unknown faction pay for committing crimes like murder, rape, and other wretched actions made known to the senators.

Hearing about the hundreds to possibly thousands of citizens found to be killed, wounded, or taken by this enemy, it was apparent these people weren't going to use diplomacy. And so, the Republic was going to return the favor tenfold. Even individuals such as Padme couldn't convince them otherwise, however both Raiden and Anakin knew one thing; the war with the CIS wasn't going to end peacefully...

That much they were sure of, and something they wanted Padme to understand. Sometimes words aren't going to solve everything.

All of her attempts to find peaceful methods to ending the war failed, even the CIS didn't want to find a peaceful end to it after killing one of their own in order to prevent this.

"Obi-Wan, Raiden," Mace uttered their names, "I know that planning for an enemy we know very little in terms how their government works to what kind of people live there, is difficult, though the senate has made it clear they want to bring this enemy to their knees. However, the senate also decided that in case the enemy should want to peacefully negotiate, then someone should be sent along with you."

Once those words left the Jedi's mouth, a feeling in the back of Raiden's mind told him who it could be.

"So what exactly are the conditions that we have to follow?" asked Raiden, a cold look in his eyes.

"All they said was to try to keep the civilian casualties to a minimum while staying within the laws of war that the senate has decided to reinstate after all these years." explained Mace Windu.

In the time which Mace Windu and many others on the council had spoken with Raiden, he was always so different than many of them.

None of them are as cold and vicious as Raiden is in combat against any opponent and once you give him an army, it was almost certain defeat for the enemy. Most of the combat missions he's done with the 336th Legion have ended with a one-sided victory because he didn't hesitate when it came to using every advantage he had available to him.

And because of this reason, he was picked to lead the campaign. But for the reason why Obi Wan was picked was because he was the only one that could talk some sense into Raiden if he was to ever decide upon actions which would view him as being no better than the CIS.

Many didn't know that his cousin had a hand in stopping him from time to time, family always did keep each other from going off the edge.

However, no could deny the strategic genius that was Raiden's mind. Many marveled at his ability to make ten men feel like a hundred, there was no denying he was one of the single greatest assets within the Republic's arsenal, even if the Jedi Council were a bit perturbed hearing one of their own called such a thing.

In recent weeks, the Republic launched numerous probes to survey the surrounding area where the gate was located. It was found that the gate rested upon a hill and it was also found that the nearest sign of civilization was a group of villages a days travel away from the hill.

During that time... the probes had found that an enemy army was on it's way to the village with it's number being around one-hundred thousand strong being comprised of the same men in the same armor that attacked the Republic earlier this month.

But the enemy was well over a few days away from reaching the hill at the rate they were going.

So that left the Republic with more than enough time to get their forces across the gate and set up a defensive position on top of the hill.

With both Raiden and Obi Wan's legions preparing themselves for such an attack, they were trying to come up with a battle strategy to bring this new enemies to their knees as quickly as possible. However, for the past few days these two have been trying to find the quickest path to victory since the probe droid had gathered information around their enemy's land.

What they found out was surprising with the fact that there was numerous villages on the border, and the deeper the droid went, the villages soon became cities and those cities became larger.

The probe droid eventually found a city which they assumed to be an important population center with the heavy presence of soldiers and defenses set up in case of attack.

Both Jedi knights figured that this was the capital city, however the path to it was blocked by the natural barriers of the world. Along the way were a few cities key to making a push for the capital, making them realize these cities needed to be taken.

"Well... it's going to have to be a campaign of dominance by taking some of the cities within this enemy's territory," Raiden surmised, "I have a feeling that these cities aren't going to be the hardest thing in the world to take, but to clear out the enemy army possibly stationed there... that's going to be a completely different story altogether."

Obi Wan knew that taking these cities won't be as difficult as it was for them to take back the capital city of Ryloth from the droid army.

The two continued this conversation back and forth for hours between the three Jedi knights as they hammered out the final details of the plan against the enemy faction across the gate. Soon the doorway at the top of the stairs, had opened to reveal two people standing there. The first one being master Yoda using his walking stick and next to him was...

"I had a feeling that you were going with us. Why do you always put yourself in these situations senator Amidala?"

Raiden said his thoughts outloud, seeing the smirk on the senator's face.

He knew she could hold her own after seeing through all the missions and espionage she's done in the past few years in the name of the Republic and while he wasn't worried about her too much, they were still family and so it was natural to feel concerned about her safety.

While it was true he cared for Padme, many within the council understood that because they were related and also understood the importance of their respective jobs. A secret which Raiden was glad he didn't need to keep to himself.

Unlike one of his fellow Jedi knights and cousin...

"I want to find a way to end this conflict peacefully, but due to the senate voting on a military campaign, then I have no choice but to accept it. That doesn't mean I won't try to find any solutions to this war that doesn't need a blaster or explosions. But talking and figuring out a solution that way."

All the Jedi knights in the room could see how adamant she was about this.

Yoda spoke up after Padme finished her explanation.

"Joining senator Amidala is, protecting her important it is. Coming along this plan is it?"

Raiden nodded as he started explaining their strategy to the oldest member of the council.

"Yes master Yoda, we will make sure to keep an eye on the senator but I highly doubt she will need it." making Padme roll her eyes. While Raiden continued to explain their plan.

"And as for the plan, it's been coming along much easier because of the information we've been getting within the last few hours or so. It would begin with the securing a base on the hill, the one where the gate is located, and clearing a path to the capital," he explained, "The trouble will be clearing out the cities due to the style of warfare these soldiers play by and seeing as they're mostly equipped with close-range weapons, means we're able to take them from a distance."

While Raiden was explaining the plan to master Yoda, Obi-Wan merely watched as his former padawan was currently showing them the map the droids have been able to create from what they've seen.

It amazed everyone in the room how quickly he was coming up with strategies to eliminate the enemy's advantages of numbers and turning them into sheep being sent into a lion's den. People like Padme and Yoda looked on with surprise at what they saw from the young Jedi in front of them.

One which seemed to possess a nose for war unlike any Jedi they've seen in their lifetime.

Even Yoda struggled to remember those who were like Raiden, for such a skilled and powerful Jedi knight to have the kind of mind he does, it was simply amazing.

 **~o0o~**

 **Jedi Temple, Hanger**

 **Few Minutes Later**

Soon Raiden, Obi-Wan, and Padme started making their way to the landing pad, the one where the gunship was waiting to take them to the staging area. Walking through the endless hallways, Padme was getting a bit nervous due to her being away from Anakin for some time.

It was the first time she got a mission where she might not even be in the same universe as him. Such a concept was difficult to grasp until they saw the symbols and markings carved into the gate were unlike anything they've ever seen.

Once passing through another pair of doors, they felt the wind from the outside.

Raiden looked forward, seeing a few gunships parked on the landing pad with squadrons of clone troopers talking among themselves. Scanning the area, the young Jedi knight found captain Iron speaking to another well-known clone trooper.

A clone by the name of commander Cody, who worked alongside his former master, Obi-Wan, on most military operations that involved the legion of clones his master commanded.

The closer they got, the louder the voices of the clone commanders got. Both Jedi saw the clones were being informed of the mission they were being assigned. One which was the first of it's kind, where they would travel to a world in a completely different universe.

Even the clones, who didn't question their orders, seemed a bit hesitant once hearing.

However, due to their training from a young age, they listened regardless and didn't question what they were told. It was simply what they needed to do, complete a mission where they needed to fight an enemy unlike most they've fought.

"As many of you were informed, the enemy we're facing doesn't have the kind of weapons like many we know of. Hell, our weakest of weapons can blast through their armor like paper. However, that doesn't mean they're not dangerous to engage in close range combat." captain Iron explained to some of the clones around them.

The two Jedi knights and senator walked to where the two clones were standing and greeted them.

"Captain Iron and commander Cody, you boys ready for this trip?" asked Raiden, looking over his shoulder to see many of the clones seemed to be preparing the gunships with last-minutes supplies and other things of that nature.

Captain Iron was the first to respond, "Ready as we'll ever be, sir!"

After a few minutes, everyone got on board the gunships and moments later, the transports took off from the ground.

The gunships started racing through the air, making sure to avoid the lanes where most civilian vehicles traveled along. In total, there were around four gunships heading to the site of the gate and where the rest of the army was preparing for such an assault.

From one of the nearby windows, chancellor Palpatine looked at the gunships passing by and could only smile at what he was seeing.

"Everything is falling into place..." he said to no one in particular.

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 5: Invasion**

Racing through the air were the gunships as it was possible to see the build-up of clone troopers preparing for the attack which is to start soon. It amazed Raiden the massive force which was assembled in order to bring down whoever it was to their knees.

Like a sign of the apocalypse with an army like this, thought Raiden.

This massive force was made up of thousands of clone troopers, from the two legions assembled for such an event like this. Each one had tanks being loaded up, troop transports being prepped and ready for such a trip, to even quick response units like speeders and walkers being assigned.

Besides that, they were getting the supplies they would need for the other side, such as ammunition, medical equipment, and fuel.

A massive force of the Republic's Grand Army was about to unleash hell on it's enemy.

The gunship flew over the invasion force until it reached the area where the other gunships were currently being held until a base could be set up. Obi-Wan sometimes couldn't believe what he was seeing, it was sometime ago since seeing an army like this.

One of his more recent experiences was Ryloth or Geonosis even.

Then the pilot's voice was heard on the radio, "Sir, we're beginning our landing approach!"

"Alright pilot! Land near the gate!" responded captain Irons, with the clone pilot nodding his head.

Once the gunship finally touched the ground, everyone had gotten out of the transport and reported to their assigned areas. Both Jedi knights and clone commanders made their way to the command center which was set up for the time being until the invasion kicked off.

Walking onto the platform, Raiden and Obi-Wan saw the numerous clones working at their stations. As they reached the center of the platform, a small table rose up and was in the middle of the two clone troopers and Jedi knights.

The image of the hill appeared before them. It was a hill which lead to an open valley, quite an easy place to bottle an enemy army and simply unleash a massive amount of fire on them. Raiden looked at the holographic image, trying to figure out what they could do.

Recently the probes said of an enemy force was approaching the hill, meaning that they needed to send in a task force to secure a position on the hill and hold it until the rest of Republic forces were ready to go.

"Since the enemy army is fast approaching, the only way to hold the hill is to send someone across with a force of clones to hold it." Obi-Wan proposed, "And because of this, the force would need to be large enough to sustain themselves until the rest of us are ready."

"I'll go." Raiden said.

Obi-Wan didn't say anything due to him suspecting Raiden was going to accept this. However, just as he accepted this, another person seemed to want in to such a mission.

Captain Iron spoke up, "General Kenobi, if it's alright with you, I want to join general Dakkar on this assignment to the other side." he said.

While the older Jedi knight didn't seem to have any problems with it, he knew the clone was under the command of Raiden. That meant regardless of what he said, all Raiden had to do was say what he wanted the clone to do and that would be that.

Once they finished talking about the force which Raiden would lead into the gate, the Jedi knight needed to find Padme as the time was coming for him to head to this new world.

As he walked through the endless rows of tanks, crates, gunships, and other such materials of war.

The young man reached the gate, a structure which still baffled the Jedi order as to where it came from. Shaking those thoughts, he soon saw Padme who was simply studying the symbols and marks that decorated the sides of the large stone structure that dominated quite a bit of of the space in between the buildings, which was considered large seeing is how tightly packed the planet was.

"It isn't going to do you any good because me and Obi Wan already tried to deciephor them without much luck on our end."

Raiden smiled as he startled his last remaining family member.

"Yes, I have heard that they don't match any existing languages or races that exist in the galaxy and I've also heard that many people have theorized that these soldiers came from another world completely, not just planet wise... but another dimension."

The idea seemed absurd at first, hell crazy.

However...

Many have looked at the fact that no race of living beings match the ones that were seen here a few weeks ago when they started their attack on the Financial District. And so the properties of the gate itself can't be traced back to any known elements from their galaxy.

"So how have you been lately Padme?"

She looked at Raiden, "Just fine and I haven't gotten shot at by any droids these last few months so don't worry about that."

The woman in front of Raiden laughed at her own little joke about she always gets herself into. "Besides, with Anakin around... he's quite protective of me. He's been through a lot and I feel I owe him that much to make sure I stay safe." she said.

He nodded back, "Yeah. The council told me about his mother and the sand people, death is something he must fear after seeing the only family he had left... just gone, just like that. However, he realizes what kind danger your job brings to you, it's something he's told me about from time to time."

Padme frowned, "Sometimes I wonder," she said, "What would've happened to him if I never met him. Would he still be the same person or..."

Both of them knew that Anakin was unstable at times. Raiden had seen it himself on a number of occasions, but he knew the Jedi knight was someone who would do everything in his power to protect those he cares about from harm's way.

It was natural to protect the one they love.

Such a concept was unfamiliar to Raiden, sometimes... he wished he could experience something similar.

But... what would the consequence of losing the one they love the most. This was the reason why the Jedi stayed away from something concerning the emotional side to them, he rather bury himself in work than deal with them.

Deciding to say something, he was about to open his mouth until he closed it. He had no idea what to say in this situation, but he was going to try to help his cousin.

As he was about to say something, but he was interrupted as a clone trooper had rushed up to the two of them.

"Sir, the vanguard force of troops are ready to go and is waiting for your return back to the command. And captain Irons is waiting for you as well."

Both of them knew that this takes priority over anything else. They were walking back to the troops and Raiden had told Padme to go to the command center while he headed to give one final speech to the vanguard units, the clones that will pave the way for the rest of the Legions.

"Well, that's my call. I'll see both you and Obi-Wan in a few hours. This battle shouldn't take too long, I hope." Raiden said.

There was some small traces of concern on her face but even she understood that Raiden could defend himself from just about anything. As he saw the men that made up the vanguard unit, with over one hundred and fifty hundred clone troopers being sent along a few units of AT-TEs to support them.

Hell, even a couple squadrons of WT-RT, bipedal machines which were used as quick strike units, were going to be sent in to provide additional support.

For this part of the plan, Raiden was to lead a task force of clones onto the other side and to fight off any potential threats while Obi Wan and Padme remained to organize the rest of the invasion force and once Raiden gave the signal that it was clear then Obi Wan was to bring in the rest of the troops.

The Jedi knight had stood on top of a crate, "Alright! You were all informed about the recent attack here on Coruscant and I know many of you are wondering how they did it. And this gate is the reason why, and our job is breakthrough and make it easier for Obi-Wan to bring in the rest of the forces."

Most of the clone soldiers nodded, their expressions hidden by the visors of their helmet.

"I think it's time that they met what a real army looks like. Alright! We're moving out in a few minutes, so get ready."

All the clone troopers rallied behind what Raiden was saying and prepared themselves. Once he gave out the order for them to move out, all the clones had gotten into their respective vehicles and were prepared to move out.

The drivers had started up the massive armored walker.

They began walking with the ground shaking, due to them having six mechanical legs, a bit as the massive fifteen ton walker entered the gate.

Raiden was inside the lead walker with the rest of them forming two columns behind them. Inside the walker, Raiden was keeping an eye on the droid that was tasked with keeping the enemy army on their radar. The first thing the pilots and the clones inside them noticed.

Darkness.

Many of the clones didn't fear darkness and had learned to fight in the dark. However, this was different for the clone army...

They were fighting in a land that they've never heard of before and were fighting an enemy that was on their way to kill them, just to take back the gate they had used to cross over into Coruscant to murder people that didn't even do anything to them.

Some of the clones that killed those soldiers, they remembered the horrified looks on the enemy's face as they continued to fire at them.

But due to the clone's training, they didn't care about the enemy looking horrified and only listened to the orders which were given to them by those such as the Jedi knights and individuals like chancellor Palpatine, such was the life of the soldier.

As they traveled through the tunnel, many of the clones continued on as if nothing was wrong.

For clones, they knew their purpose in life was to fight and eventually die. It was natural and something they all accepted, well for the most part. There were those who... were different from the rest.

Some abandoned their brothers, some weren't fit for battle, hell some even started lives of their own in the galaxy.

There were a few which captain Iron met in his lifetime, while he understood the cycle, it didn't mean he liked it. And due to the age acceleration, captain Iron was only in his mid-twenties even thought he was created a few years ago.

Such was the life of a clone, trained to be the ultimate soldier in the galaxy.

A title which many were proud to have, and it gave them hope in knowing they're fighting for something. To prove their name wasn't just for show, it was what kept Irons going.

Moments later, there were conversations between the pilots of the massive AT-TEs walking through the pitch black dark with only their instruments to guide them through such a thing.

"Yo Dex! Man this tunnel is pretty dark!"

The AT-TE's pilot had responded to his fellow pilot, "I know CT-2341! Think we're going to fight this enemy army!"

He heard a snicker on the radio, "Hehe, oh they'll show up! Just be ready Dex!"

There was silence for the rest of the time in which they traveled through the tunnel. As the massive vehicles kept walking, the pilots had saw the shimmer of light in the distance.

Even Raiden saw the light in the distance, thinking that they were near the end of this.

"Alright guys, be prepared since we have no other information about the enemy's strength, we're going to have to rely on the info the droid got us."

All the troops nodded to him.

Understanding that they needed to tread carefully against this enemy that relied on numbers more than anything else.

 **~o0o~**

 **Other Side**

 **X Minutes Later**

Time seemed to speed up as the massive walkers had touched solid ground, still making the ground shake underneath them. After a few minutes the AT-TEs had lined up on the top of the hill to have the advantage in terms of firing their guns.

Raiden and most of the clones had loaded off the transports. Cargo such as the WT-RTs were being prepped and ready for combat. For most of the clones it was quiet as they took in the environment they were currently standing in.

Most of the land was covered in green with mountains seen in the distance but due to it being night, all of the clones had their night vision sensors on, allowing them to see better. While the hill they were on was the only real elevated position in the area, meaning they would have the advantage in the fight.

"Speaking of being too quiet, we got company boys!"

Captain Irons called out to his troops over their comms.

"...And lot's of them! Get your asses ready for combat!"

The WT-RTs had stayed behind the line of clone troopers crouched down at the moment with their tanks seeing that the massive enemy force was just a couple hundred yards away from where they were. Raiden and captain Irons had stayed at the front of the clone troopers.

Because of their tanks advanced technology, they were able to spot the enemy force in the hills.

"Sir, we have spotted the enemy force approaching our position, we are requesting permission to engage the enemy formation."

Raiden didn't say anything as he signaled to his clone troopers to wait. As they could hear the thousands of footsteps, heavy armor that the troops wore along with the swords, axes they carried into combat.

As they drew closer, the clones had stayed low enough so none of the enemies could see them. However, as the Empire's forces drew closer to the gate. Many of their soldiers saw these massive metal creatures with a metal pipe on top of it.

The closer they got to these things, the metal pipes started moving towards their direction. What they didn't expect to hear was a strange word that they've never heard of before in all their lives.

"Attack!"

What followed next would shock these men, they had witnessed dozens of these more metal creatures that had only two legs, rushing towards them with this blue light coming from them.

But what was more frightening was the fact that they were bring ridden by men in the same heavy white armor with gray markings all over that attacked their brothers in arm that went through the gate a few weeks ago.

It was too late as some of the blue light had been able to burn through their armor like they weren't even wearing any to begin with. There was only one thing they could think of that had the ability to do this; magic.

However, this was far from magic.

" _What is this magic?! How are they doing this?!_ "

" _Oh god, we're all going to die!_ "

Most of the units in the front were beginning to panic. With their commander soon quelling that fear and getting them to charge the enemy in front of them.

The clones began to fire on the incoming enemy units. Laser shots were flying at them with the heavy walker units using their massive cannons to kill a large number of the 'Empire' as most within the Republic called them for the large amount of territory they possessed.

Raiden had stayed with the clones as they began to punish them from distance.

"Captain Irons, I want the lightening squadrons to start flanking them with the tanks to keep hitting them in the back so their escape is going to be difficult! I'll hit them from the front!"

He started to rush in front of the clones as they continued to provide covering fire for the Jedi knight. While Irons was relaying the message to the lightening squadrons, Raiden had thrown himself headfirst into the enemy's line.

 ***BOOM! BOOM!***

 ***BANG***

The black haired Jedi had unleashed his duel lightsabers. Slashing and tearing a part the enemy forces.

He cut one of the soldiers across the chest, the lightsaber burning through most of the armor that the enemy soldier was wearing. Quickly taking his other lightsaber and stabbing one through his head.

Soon the enemy forces were being torn a part as the archers attempting to hit the clone forces on the hill were being hit by the heavy cannon of the AT-TEs. The Empire's army was in complete disarray with the officers trying to get them from retreating.

Raiden Forced pushed a few of the strange looking creatures that worked along side the 'Empire's' army.

' _This is the military power of their world...although they've never faced us before._ '

As the corpses of the soldiers continued piling up on the hill. The clones continued to hammer them, completely ignoring the screams of pain and unfamiliar words had flew over them since they were given orders to hold the enemy forces off for the rest of their brothers to appear through the gate.

It didn't take long.

What remained of the massive enemy army was somewhere around sixty to sixty-five percent. However, those men had abandoned their duty and ran in unadulterated fear of what the clones had done to their fellow brothers-in-arms.

Many of the clones fired on the enemy forces retreating, completely and efficiently killing as many of them as possible with the WT-RTs continuing to hammer those that remained strong enough to keep fighting against them.

After Raiden cut down the officers giving out the orders, creating havoc with the soldiers having no orders had simply continued fighting to their deaths. Captain Irons and a few of the clones had rushed down with the Jedi knight to cover him.

"Haven't seen this many enemy forces since the second invasion of Geonosis. What about you captain?"

"Same here, but I remember the massive battle on Kamino with the Separatist launching an attack on there."

Kamino, the clone's home-world.

The Battle of Kamino was fought during the Clone Wars between the Jedi-led Grand Army of the Galactic Republic and the Droid Army of the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

The Separatists launched the battle as one of their key campaigns during the war, hoping to capture Kamino and eliminate the cloning facilities in Tipoca City, thus depriving the Republic from creating more clone troopers for their army.

The Separatists, led by General Grievous and Asajj Ventress, were repelled by the Republic forces.

The unit remained silent, remembering how close the Separatist were to winning the war, if it wasn't for the clone forces from prevailing against the droid forces. After shaking those stray thoughts from their head and continuing their battle, or at this point one-sided slaughter of the enemy army.

A few short hours later the battle was over...for now that was. Is what most of the clone troopers thought for now.

Raiden looked over the valley that was now covered in the bodies of the Empire's forces. Wondering why these men just couldn't surrender, some of the clones had tried to induce some of the soldiers to surrender to them.

But regardless they charged the clones, forcing them to kill the Empire's soldiers.

"Captain, how do you expect this invasion to go?"

The clone didn't respond right away.

"...Well from what little taste we got, this invasion will have blood shed and will require many more of their soldiers to die."

Raiden released a humorless chuckle, "Now I see why you and me are partners captain."

"Why is that, sir"

Irons was rather interested in this.

"You and me...we're not so different from each other. Brutally honest and cold on the battlefield. And yet, we can still have friends with the people around us that is why you and me are the same, regardless of you being a clone trooper. You're still a person in the end, most within the Republic know this as well. Many of your brothers die everyday on the battlefield and some within the Republic feel guilty for that, sending you to your deaths."

"Even if you see as people, we're soldiers and soldiers die...but we die fighting to our last breaths as soldiers of the Grand Republic. Sir"

"I see, well Irons you better be ready cause I feel that this enemy won't stop until they've drive us from these lands."

Raiden knew that the enemy wasn't going to stop, and he knew that this was the beginning to an all new war the Republic was getting involved in while they were still fighting the Separatist. Although with Count Dooku dead, and with General Grievous the only military leader left.

The general went into hiding as many worlds started falling to the Republic.

With the war with the Separatist slowly falling a part from the lack of leadership. They were getting involved with a new enemy that underestimated the Republic's ability to wage war against it those that attack them.

Raiden and captain Irons turned around, only to see that Obi Wan and Padme had arrived. Along with them were the rest of the military forces they were prepared to bring in, a massive force of clone troopers, armor, and artillery that were going to help with the invasion.

Air power would arrive later on when the base they were beginning to construct had a fully operational hanger to store them in. While gunships would be arriving soon, they had to travel mostly using the vehicles they would be provided.

Raiden met up with Obi Wan. They began to walk around.

"So I've scared off the enemy forces for now, so we should be fine for a few weeks at best."

Obi Wan looked at his former padawan with a raised eyebrow.

"And how big was the enemy force?"

"Around a hundred thousand was sent, with seventy percent being killed... meanwhile the one's that abandoned are long gone by now, probably spreading the word about us." Raiden said.

 **~o0o~**

 **Somewhere on the hill**

 **X Hours Later**

Meanwhile captain Irons and commander Cody were patrolling the area of the battlefield

The morning after the massive one-sided battle with the "Empire's forces".

The brightened view was one of innumerable corpses of people, horses, and other beings that completely covered the earth.

There was even a winged dragon that lay stretched out after having fallen from the massive damage that one of the AT-TEs cannon had done to it. Although in legends of dragons, or the Krayts in their case were said to have scales harder than iron, that was what happened. It hadn't been able to endure mere cannon shells.

Cody thought while looking at it, "Looks like we just became a part of this world's news now."

The enemies who attacked the Financial District on Coruscant had numbered about one hundred thousand soldiers.

Since the beginning of last night's attack, there had been roughly sixty-thousand, with the strange beings not being counted in that list as well. Altogether around one hundred and twenty thousand soldiers had been shot, so Cody wondered what they intended to do now.

There was no way to know what this world's people were saying about all this. As things stood now, they had only secured the outskirts of the Gate, and still hadn't done any kind of investigation.

But if they both thought with common sense, there was no way that a tribe or nation which lost tens of thousands of its military forces would just stay calm. Among the fallen soldier were ones who were unmistakably children. It wasn't clear whether they were really kids or just some species with that sort of appearance, but... If the country had come to the point of sending children into battle, you could say that it was already falling apart.

Both the clone commanders had felt this way, so the rest of the leadership naturally also thought.

That they needed to investigate this world.

They were short of information to help decide whether their current objective should be to advance forward and expand their territory, or just continue to protect the circumference of the Gate, or go even further and negotiate with the enemy. But in the end, it was to attack the capital city and capture those who are responsible.

Fortunately, they had been able to map the surrounding area using the aerial photography of the probe droids sent into this world. If they could make a runway, they'd be able to send their more advance recon droids to help out with mapping the lands.

Therefore, what they wanted to investigate next were the populations, races, industries, religions, and political structures, along with the character of the inhabitants.

How would they investigate that?

By going there directly, of course.

"That might be for the best."

"Yeah, the more information we have then the easier it'll be to make sure we don't attack any innocent people."

Both clone troopers had continued patrolling and were on their way back when Raiden and Obi Wan had caught up with them. Raiden started explaining that he wanted Irons for something that they were starting.

Irons had nodded, understanding that the general needed him for something.

As Irons was currently being informed that Raiden and Obi Wan were organizing the base with the flow of materials, men, machines being deployed into the 'Special Region' as the Republic was officially calling it. And after being told that they were organizing a few groups to investigate the area surrounding the gate.

"So this is more or less a recon mission sir?"

The clone commander simply asked the general.

"Yeah...pretty much Irons. First of all, I'm organizing six-person deep investigation scouting parties. Your duty is to command the third numbered one. Come into contact with the locals in your assigned area and grasp their condition. If possible, for the sake of obtaining their cooperation in future activities, form friendly relationships with them."

"Sir, yes sir!"

And so Irons, while checking through his weapons and equipment, became the commanding officer of the third scouting party.

It was made up of nine other men. One was a sniper, a demolition expert, and a few of the more experienced veterans of the 336th Legion and 212th Attack battalion. And the other four were rooks, being a part of the war for a few weeks at best.

They were to use WT-RTs and were assigned an AT-TE to provide some support.

As he stood in front of the nine other clone troopers assigned underneath him. He saw that they were picked for a certain reason, hell even the rooks must have had something about them that had their squad commander send them up.

"Alright! I'm captain Irons of the 336th Legion. And you can call me either sir or captain, do I make myself clear?"

"Sir, yes sir!"

The clones acknowledged and captain Irons had nodded.

"All right, get you gear and ammo ready. We move out in 5." All the clones had started rounding up their equipment and four of them had gotten loaded up on the WT-RTs while the rest of them had been loaded up onto the single AT-TE they had.

"Well troops! We're moving out!" captain Iron said, as the armored walker started moving.

It's massive leg had lifted up and moved as they began their recon mission.

 **~o0o~**

 **Utapau, Outer Rim**

 **Couple Hours Later**

As General Grievous landed on Utapau, one of the few planets left in the control of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, he was more irritated than anything else with the way the war had been going as of late with the constant defeats at the hands of the Republic.

Walking to what would be considered the command room for the droid army on this world, all the general could do was smash his hand against the metal table in frustration of recent events that have transpired between the two factions.

"Winning this blasted war is more... _(cough, cough)_...impossible after this latest failure against them!"

Soon he heard the door open to reveal a droid carrying a small device in it's grip.

Approaching the droid, he started getting more information from their spy network inside the Republic. Especially when Lord Sidious gave him some information about this brand new gate which appeared on Coruscant just a mere few days after their own attack on the planet.

"I knew it! I knew something was wrong with the Republic... _(cough, cough)_...the moment their attention was not on the war was something we should have known something changed. Order what competent commanders left in the Outer Rim to hold their positions for as long as they possibly can until we can gain an advantage over them."

"Indeed, we do general Grievous and finding a way to recreate the gate is the only way to do that."

A new voice had interjected into the conversation, as the figure stepped out of the darkness, it revealed a man that looked to be in his late twenties with short gray hair with one eye glowing red and the other being dark blue. While his mouth was covered with a mouth-guard.

Even Grievous knew that this mad-man would kill anything if it stood in his way.

His name was simply Shoijjoin. A Sith lord that worked alongside Count Dooku before he died.

The man walked up to where general Grievous was currently standing at the moment, humming a strange tone to himself. He was known as a mad-man and a killer by most within the Separatist. However due to his immense skills as a general and a Sith Lord, that was the only reason they tolerated him.

But the new leader of the Separatist didn't care if the man was here. He had no reason to stay with them to begin with since Count Dooku died.

"Hmph... let me ask you something... _(cough, cough)_...why do you still remain here? You could simply leave since Dooku has died at the hands of Skywalker."

"Haha...oh general Grievous...you must realize that something of interest is happening with the Republic and I want to see how this little situation with the Separatist develops in the next few months of what's left of this war because I feel like it will come to an end soon enough."

The Sith said as the general didn't sound pleased to hear.

That could be understood by looking at the current situation that the Separatist are in at the moment with their old leader dead at the hands of the Republic. After the Republic completed the phase of securing the Gate, it sent small units to various places in the special region for intelligence gathering and pacification work.

General Grievous continued to look over the reports, then looked at his subordinate. "I see, knowing the Republic. There would be some corruption with the event of something like this."

"That's right, Grievous. With Palpatine not taking a risk with this situation and is dealing with like they were expected to. He isn't rushing to a conclusion."

All the organic-cybernetic being did was look at the Sith's eyes with his own reptilian eyes.

When Chancellor took a tough stance after the Financial District Incident, he received an unprecedented boost in his approval rating that stabilized his political power. So one could say that he didn't need to rush.

With general Grievous being the only military leader the Separatist had. He needed to quicly make something out of nothing as they had their backs to the wall at the moment. That was the position he was currently in...

"My good general, the Gate is a frontier."

"I quite agree, even if you are a Sith."

"Just imagine what possibilities might lie on the other side of the Gate."

The only thing that Grievous thought was the possibility for attacking the Republic through a place that they didn't expect to get attacked from. It would lead to the possibility of defeating the Republic without having to cost what's left of his fleet.

He cared little for what was inside the gate, if it didn't help the war effort against the Republic, then it was of no use to him in the long run.

However, he would need to send in a large of army of droids in order to make this happen. Though the problem for him was that he was limited in the forces he had in the Outer Rim and with Grievous suspecting that this war wasn't going to last any longer than a few weeks at this rate.

Constantly being defeated, lack of resources, and fear amongst the so-called leaders of the CIS have been a real issue for the general to work with.

Until the Sith lord spoke up, "Don't worry, Grievous. There's something that you should know about. When I was searching through the planets of the Outer Rim not too long ago and I felt an energy like one never before felt by the Force."

The general didn't seemed impress as he couldn't simply take the word of a madman about the possibility of another gate appearing.

"That's not enough to go on Sith lord and you know that... _(cough, cough)_..well enough."

Looking through the report, he saw what interested people like the leaders of the Separatist as well as other individuals in this galaxy.

Resources existed there. There was no doubt of that, but that wasn't what interested him at all unlike others that he was forced to listen to.

When they analyzed the arms of the soldiers who had invaded, they established that their mineral resources were about the same as most planets in the Outer Rim. On top of that, they identified the possibility of the scarce resources which on this side of the Gate were called rare metals and rare elements being present in abundance in the special location.

The Banking Clans had already begun to exert that kind of pressure on the Senate. Many other companies and businesses had also begun to act behind the scenes with their sights on the profits and resources brought about by the Gate.

"The question is to what extent we can guarantee your interests in keeping the Separatist alive?" asked the Sith lord.

There were too many questions going through the general's head at the moment.

"What? You think I'm lying when I say that this energy could mean a new gate would be available to the Separatist and allow for you to have a chance at victory, or the possibility of escaping this world and trying to set-up your own little empire in another."

But the general glared at the Sith lord with hatred like he had for anybody from either the Sith or Jedi.

"My hands are... _(cough, cough)_...tied up at the moment in this world. I do not have the luxury to become involved in a conflict elsewhere, let alone another dimension."

The general sighed deeply at the annoyance of a reality that wouldn't go the way he wanted it to and with trying to fight off the inevitable of losing this war.

"Looking at the report, doesn't it seem like the battle on the other side has been really rough?" The Sith said.

"The amount of ammunition they used seems to have out of the ordinary. But it's calmed down recently. With the Republic having experienced soldiers attacking this enemy force then that means the enemy will be taking on someone who has been at war for years."

"Hmph. So then, how do you think our faction should respond to that Sith?" General Grievous asked, intending to sound sarcastic as this wasn't something he wanted to focus on.

"At the current stage, I believe that trying to find our own portal would be the first step to trying to stay alive in this dangerous situation that you're in since the Republic will be looking for you. Either dead or alive is what I believe they'll do. I imagine that what we do after that will vary according to the situation."

If they tried to find a portal, it would stretch what little leaders they had to enter this world and to take what they need from it and to launch an invasion of Coruscant when they don't have the resources to do so anymore after losing the battle over Coruscant.

Finding a way into this world would decide the fate of their faction all together. And the general knew that the only person he could send to other side to deal with the two Jedi knights was the mad-man standing in front of him.

"If, and I mean if, we find a way to the other side. Then you're going in with a droid army to take some territory for us to use and to fight your way to the gate and if you do live long enough to do that then I will pull everything I have left in the Outer Rim to get through that gate."

And if the situation took a turn for the worse, it would be fine to intervene and seize control of things. To do that, they would make arrangements with the Separatist Council. That was what the Separatist Senate had said voted upon.

But general Grievous was still unsatisfied.

As long as the Republic kept doing well like they were now, it seemed unlikely there would be a chance to verbally or physically interfere.

Grievous was being confronted by the need to show the Separatist concrete evidence that they could survive this war. On the other hand, it was certainly true that he couldn't ignore the misgivings of the Sith. The new military leader clicked his tongue while nodding and saying

"You're going to listen to me when we find this gate."

The gate's appearance. It was a historic event that led to the discovery of a new world entirely.

Just as the formation of the Republic was the biggest event in the galaxy's history, it could be assumed that the gate's discovery would greatly change the galaxy's structure. Because the government of every system understood that very much, they were closely watching the Republic's actions.

And so were the Sith and Grievous...

 **~o0o~**

 **Outside the Room**

Shoijjoin had walked out of the room that Grievous was in. He took out his lightsaber, revealing that he wielded two lightsabers that many Siths couldn't do.

However, he heard about a Jedi knight that was considered a brilliant tactician and commander that would make an excellent rival. His lust for blood had gone as far even disturbing the rest of the Separatist Council. All the battles he's participated in had ended with the clone forces taking heavy losses even if they won the battle and many were slain by his hand as well.

The gate would allow him to see who was better, him or this Jedi knight.

The war in the 'Special Region' would take on a new level of ferocity soon enough.

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 6: New World, Old Rules**_

* * *

 **Another chapter to this story... and a new year is upon us.**

 **And yeah, I decided to add a bit more of the politics side to this story before the battle portion since well... this is Star Wars and with the era that I'm using, the Senate is a pretty big influence on things around the galaxy and we're going to see that soon enough.**

 **Besides the new chapters I needed to write, the next one should be coming out soon.**

 **I promise you that much.**

 **So until next time guys, have a great day!**


	6. Chapter 6

" ** _We make war that we may live in peace._** " - Aristotle

* * *

 ** _BREAKTHROUGH SUCCESSFUL!_**

 _After Jedi knights Obi Wan Kenobi and Raiden Dakkar had entered this new world with a new enemy_

 _With Raiden entering the gate earlier and having to fight off a massive enemy force in order for the rest of the clone army to enter the new world that was called the 'Special Region' by the Republic Senate._

 _However, with the gate being revealed to the galaxy..._

 _Dark plots have began unfolding with new Separatist leader General Grievous taking over for the now deceased Count Dooku. And now with a mysterious Sith entering the picture...what will happen with our Jedi knights in this new world._

 _And the dark clouds have begun to fall over the galaxy once again with the gate being active._

 _This new world brings war once again..._

 **~o0o~**

Following the defeat and systematic slaughter of the Imperial Army, the surrounding vassal states were given the order by the Emperor himself to unite and defeat this new and powerful enemy which now in control of Arnus Hill.

Heeding this call, the Principality of League, the Elbe Kingdom, the Kingdom of Alguna, and the Kingdom of Mudwan had all joined forces and converged to Arnus Hill with their armies, fully confident in their abilities.

Their numbers was almost half a million strong and the kings were confident that they'd win on the first day of battle. After all, it was a million against a meager few thousand of these soldiers from the reports the Empire gave to them.

But one king had his doubts. Duran was the king of Elbe, he was known throughout the land as a fierce warrior, the Lion of the Elbe Clan. They say with age comes wisdom, and with age also comes instincts. And his instincts were telling him that this was all wrong.

How can a small force reduce the Imperial Army to shambles in just a few hours and now, the Empire was calling upon them to battle this threat. It just didn't make sense to Duran so he decided that he won't be joining in the front lines for now.

This was a battle he just couldn't risk going in blind.

And that moment of hesitation was the only thing that saved him from the horror that he was about to see.

During the early hours of the next morning, kings Mudwan and Alguna had taken a force of over fifty-thousand soldiers to attack the enemy while the other army should still be sleeping. As this massive force continued marching towards Alnus Hill.

One of the two kings looked around, seeing the ground was scorched, "Where is the Empire's army, they should be already in combat with them!"

One of his men didn't understand either, "I-I don't know, sir."

What the two kings didn't know was that two scout clone troopers were following their movements from some distance away on a patrol of their base's border. The clone knew that this force was different from the Empire's army since they had soldiers with different sets of armors each.

They needed to know if this army was hostile or not. Taking out his weapon, the soldier zoomed in on those who were currently riding the creatures while the rest walked on foot. It let the clones knows where the officers of the group.

Meaning, there was a general in their ranks.

Using the rifle, the clone saw the army was fully armed and were heading right for the hill they captured a few days ago. While it was safe to assume these men were hostile, there was no telling what kind of problems would happen since these men were from another nation.

However...

After seeing that this army was hostile towards the Republic, he had contacted the base for fire support.

"Star Base one, do you copy?"

Static lasted a few seconds before someone picked up, " _This is commander Cody here, what's the situation CT-3756?_ "

"Sir, we have a large enemy army approaching the base and by the looks of it, this force seems to be different from the Empire's forces."

Silence rung over the comms until a different voice spoke this time, " _Trooper, this general Kenobi here. What do you see exactly?_ "

"General Kenobi, I see an enemy force of over fifty-thousand enemy soldiers wearing armor similar to the Empire's but the colors and how the soldiers sound are far different from the other one that attacked us. I think there's a good chance these men came from nation, possibly one allied with the one we defeated sometime ago."

" _Alright scout, I'm going to patch you through with the artillery units we have currently set-up at the moment and once you give the coordinates to the clones, then they'll open the guns on them. Do I make myself clear soldier?_ "

"Sir, yes sir."

The scout had taken a laser designator that he had. After marking the targets for the artillery guns set-up, he sent the coordinates to them.

" _Well CT-3756, prepare to enjoy the fireworks that are about to go off in just a few moments from now._ " commander Cody chuckled.

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 6: New World, Old Rules**

The scout trooper kept his range-finder on the enemy army that was still over six miles from the base. King Mudwan had began to hear strange sounds over his army, looking at the sky was a sight he would be the last scene he would ever see.

 ***BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM***

 ***BANG! BANG!***

Plasma shells hit the enemy army, devastating the fifty-thousand man force as the plasma began to burn the bodies of the soldiers. King Alguna had saw Mudwan's body was not just torn up from the force of explosion but they seem to have been burned to a crisp.

While many of the soldiers thought this was another magic this new enemy had at their disposal. As some of the soldiers from the Allied army began to desert the battle in order to survive the monstrous barrage of magic that devastated their ranks.

The king had saw one of his soldiers coming towards him, although to his shock the man was a sight from hell. Half the man's body was burned as his flesh was bubbling from the extreme heat the plasma shells contained.

"P-please...k-kill...m-me..."

The scout trooper just watched as this enemy force was demolished in just a few minutes. After seeing the one remaining person amongst the damage, the scout had taken out his sniper rifle and took aim at the man's head.

"Well, orders are orders. Time to say bye-bye to this world."

He exhaled before pulling the trigger, seeing the man's head torn off his body. In just under a half-hour, the clone's artillery units had destroyed the fifty-thousand soldiers from a few different nation in this world, that was what Obi Wan and Raiden thought was the case.

Following the massacre of the fifty-thousand strong.

Soon the battle became a shootout as clone troopers and artillery began to pound the enemy force without hesitation. Most of the enemy soldiers saw the blue light magically burning through their armor with ease.

With the armored walkers using their smaller armaments to take down the dragons while some of the clones used the Z-6 rotary blaster cannon, The Z-6 rotary blaster cannon was a heavy weapon that fired a massive spray of blaster bolts at a target. It was similar to a heavy repeating blaster, except it did not require a tripod to operate and thus could be carried by a single heavy weapon specialist.

The Z-6 was large and unwieldy and required training to use effectively.

Watching from afar, king Duran saw the plumes of smoke rising from the ground and the massive tremors caused by the explosions on the other side, the same side where the other kings were with their armies. All they could do was wonder what was going on.

"I-Is... Alnus hill... erupting?"

Most of the dragons were trying to evade the fire coming from the ground, with most failing and getting killed along with their rider. To see something like this, it was horrifying to see the kind of magic being used to tear their soldiers into pieces.

Once the king and his men made their way to where most of their soldiers were...

Words couldn't describe what they were seeing...

It was like hell had unleashed a horde of demons and their men were simply caught in something they were never supposed to be a part.

Seeing the most appalling sight in his life. Bodies of soldiers were thrown across the field, ranging from the burned torsos to charred legs, and they could hear the cries from some of the men still alive, it made even the toughest of soldiers to throw up. Some seem to still walk around with burns all over their body, pleading for mercy.

Duran had seen enough and ordered his men to put those that remained alive out of their misery.

And ordered their forces to retreat.

Within the second day alone, the Allied army lost over ninety-thousand soldiers within the first fours hours of combat. Ordering a retreat, the remaining kings had began to plan for a new assault on the hill with the intent to take it back.

King Duran of Elbe had suggested a night attack. He persuaded them with the fact that the enemy soldiers will be sleeping, leaving themselves open to attack. Thus it would allow for them to charge into their fortress and kill most of them before they knew what hit them.

However, there was one small flaw to the plan...

One of the scout droids had recorded their conversation and relayed the message back to the Republic's base.

Both Obi-Wan and Raiden started rounding up the clones, telling them that there was an impending assault that was going to take place in just a few hours from now. Raiden had told them to set-up ambush points along the way to slow down their forces.

"If we can get any of these soldiers to surrender then you are to take them as a prisoner back to base and for them to be transported to Coruscant. Am I understood, under no circumstances are you to kill them if they surrender to you..."

Raiden's eyes hardened.

"And if they continue to resist, then you may shoot to kill. That is all."

All the clones nodded as Obi Wan looked over to his former padawan, "I feel like that order was a bit extreme Raiden, even for you. I must say, this is new even for you, to take on this many enemy soldiers that aren't droids."

"Well this is the way to destroy the enemy, and while I may be a Jedi knight that doesn't mean I won't do what's necessary to win. And getting the locals to see we're a good guy is part of that so we have information about this new enemy."

The two continued to walk through the base and it was once they reached the command center, it was where they looked at the carnage which had just happened a few hours ago. Neither one said a word until the two felt something.

A raw emotion they've felt before...

One usually associated with those confused, wondering why the hell they were in this situation in the first place.

Obi Wan remained quiet for a second, "You felt the fear, confusion those men were feeling right."

"Of course I did master. I believe there is a bigger plot going on in that capital city right now and manipulation was certainly a part of this."

Both Jedi knights figured these men for simply sent to die because the Empire would have warned them of us... unless they were feared by others. With the Republic forces crippling the military advantage they had meant they did what was necessary to stay in power.

Just like the scout droid's information said, the clones had saw a massive enemy force of over a hundred thousand soldiers approaching the base. Many of the clones had their night vision sensors turned on so they could see where the target was.

Once the order was give to attack them.

All hell broke loose.

The enemy soldiers were caught in a cross-fire with clone troopers firing from the sides while heavy weapons hit them from the front such as the AT-TEs and AT-APs began to use the massive artillery gun they possessed.

Artillery units farther back unloaded shell after shell of plasma rounds, hitting the back in order to make sure the enemy didn't escape. Many of the Allied soldiers were in complete shock and horror to see the magic being used. With many seeing their fellow brothers being ripped to shreds by this...army...no demon army...

With most of the troops in hysteria and panicking from the enemy on Alnus hill, king Duran had tried to get his men under control. But to no avail.

Seeing the dragon riders were being reduced to a bloody pulp, Duran knew that having the numerical advantage was not helping their chances of winning and as entire columns of their soldiers being wiped out from the enemy's magic.

On the clone's side, none of their men were killed while a few had their armor scratched up because of some of the stray arrows hit them. After some time the clones had witnessed a sight they hadn't seen since the droid army's massive attacks. And they saw the enemy's biggest attempt yet.

"Sir! We have a whole god damn city approaching the base!"

Within the last few hours the clone army had received some air units to support them before this battle. Transported to them were a squad of the Alpha-3 Nimbus-class V-wing starfighters were some of the more recent spacecraft in the Republic Navy, and frequently filled the role as combat support ships. The small silhouette, high speed, and great agility of this fighter made it hard to target and a very effective ship despite its small size.

As all twelve of them launched into the sky, they were give orders by Obi Wan and Raiden to support the clone troopers on the ground. They took off from what was currently constructed of the hanger. Forming into vic formation, they were approaching the battlefield in under one minute.

"Jackal 2-1 to Jackal flight, prepare for gun run on the enemy position. Any clone forces in need of support down there? Cause we're fully loaded and ready."

" _Yeah! Jackal flight! This is CT-1278, we're in need of support down here cause there's a whole god forsaken city down here!_ "

"Alright what's your position brother?"

It took a second for the clone to figure out his position.

" _We're 1 mike from your position and at coordinates...Alpha-one-zero-five!_ "

The flight commander checked the coordinates and confirmed them with the rest of the flight.

"CT-1278! We're on route for the enemy's position! Just sit tight we'll clean out the bad guys."

The clones looked over their shoulders to see the V-wings roaring overhead, unleashing their payload on the massive enemy force. Seeing the bombs they carried slowly falling back towards the ground as gravity did the rest.

Then...

 ***BOOOOOOOOOMMMM***

The skies had opened up on the enemy army as the cluster-bombs released their payload on the enemy. Soon all hell broke loose with the clones started to fire and the artillery continued the punishment of dropping shell after shell of hot plasma on them.

" _Run! We're all going to die!_ "

" _Oh god!_ "

Whole units and battalions of his men were wiped as king Duran looked on in horror seeing the explosions moving closer towards his position. Before the flames of death could get to him, he saw a bow and arrow lying there, probably from one of his dead soldiers.

"I will at least kill one of them!"

He pulled back the bow and fired the arrow, seeing that death was upon. It was at this moment he realized what had happened at this moment, the Empire had tricked them into dying so their place as the top nation of their world.

' _I see now..._ '

Duran was consumed by the explosion. Scattering his body towards somewhere.

In just three days worth of fighting, over half a million soldiers were slaughtered by the clone army. Raiden and Obi Wan were walking around the area where the Allied armies had once stood just a few short hours ago.

As the young Jedi master crouched down and picked up a bow broken in half.

"I have a bad feeling that there's something more to this whole thing then we know. Wouldn't you agree master?"

Obi Wan didn't respond at first as he saw a large flock of vultures preying upon the bodies of the enemy army. While this sight would disturb most, many Jedi knights had grown somewhat immune to the smell of death. Obi Wan was one of those.

"Quite so, like during the battle some of them felt confused at why it was only them fighting."

Raiden had a feeling what was going on, "It's like they were sent to their death by someone of higher power... like a king of some sort..."

 **~o0o~**

 **Special Region, Imperial Capital**

 **Couple Days Later**

Every day, hundreds of lords and nobles would visit Emperor Molto's castle.

Senators, nobles, and courtiers would meet and do all kinds of things, politics being treated as though it was just something that needed to be taken care of.

There was the sense that they would enjoy the pleasures of dancing elegantly at meetings, indulging in gourmet food, gambling, and entertaining themselves with romances, and then just talk to one other a little bit at the assembly hall. The nobles had occasionally decided whether to send out the army based on the number of trophies from a game of fox hunting.

However, the very recent string of defeats was quite sufficient to lower the spirits of the imperial court's lords and nobles. The gaudy works of art seemed dulled, and the energetic music seemed lifeless compared to before.

A symptom when realizing the kind of situation their nation was in at the moment.

What sustained Emperor Molto's prided luxuries were his mighty military and vast assets. Even a child knew that those two things were exactly what supported the Empire's hegemony over the continent.

But now, one of those supports had been lost.

Given that military officers and nobles who were part of the imperial court had gone to the battlefront, there had been no small number of casualties among their fellows. The number of widows skyrocketed, and the nobles had to attend an inumerable amount of funerals.

The loss of life was becoming too much and the whispers for peace were becoming louder by the day as whatever bodies found, were returned to the captial. However, those who spoke of peace were never heard from again.

Causing fear among the nobles and quickly quashing any who stood in the way of the Empire.

The Emperor had to prepare for mourning ceremonies, and the inactive days of the imperial court continued on.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, the damage to the Legio VII Claudia Pia Fidelis has become truly grave. The number of deceased and unaccounted for is approximately over sixty-thousand. When we include those who cannot fight again because of injurities, we expected that the casualties exceed well over ten-thousand soldiers at best. It appears that the defeated legion have lost their leadership and begun to return to their hometowns."

Those numbers didn't include beings such as orcs, goblins, and trolls. Humanoids whose intelligence was inferior to humans were given the same treatmeant as warhorses.

The Emperor moved his body listlessly in response to Domestic Minister Earl Marcus's report.

"Hmph, one could say that everything has gone as planned. With this, those senators who became frightened because of some slight losses should feel relieved."

Soon Earl spoke up, wanting the Emperor to understand what was going on at the moment, "However, the movements of the enemies who appeared from the Gate are of concern..."

"You appear to have lost your nerve as well." the Emperor said, seeing how nervous the aid was at the moment.

"This timidity has accompanied me from birth, and I have been unable to attain magnanimity such as that possessed by your Majesty."

"So be it. In that case, I shall act to relieve the worries of my trusted retainer. This is not such a difficult problem. The distance from Alnus Hill to here is quite far. It will fine to use the Empire's extensive territory as a bulwark. Making sure this enemy can not reach the capital city."

The Emperor continued to explain the strategy he wanted done.

He commanded that if the enemy were to begin to move, they should burn down all the roads and villages from Alnus to the imperial capital, put poison in the wells and fountainheads, and seize all the food down to the last grain of wheat. He said that if they did that, the enemy would be unable to continue to supply themselves and would be brought a halt amid the scorched earth, and if that happened, surely they would show some weakness to take advantage of, regardless of how powerful their military force and amazing their magic.

However, there came risk from using tactics of this nature...

If they couldn't take from the locals, they would have to transport food from their own country, and the long distance transportation of food would be a major burden, even if they used horses. With things like that, their tactical strength would decline proportional to their closeness to the imperial capital and the major cities within it's territory.

In contrast, the Empire's military forces would have more of an advantage the closer they were to the imperial capital.

If they constructed bases in every location and forced the enemies to bleed, the enemies would lose their momentum and naturally crumble on the spot. That was the common sense that formed the basis of this world's military science.

Make the enemy do a long march, and hit them when they tired.

It was an extremely popular and easy to understand strategy in any world, which is why it was so effective. However, the effect of using a scorched earth tactic on your own country was serious and hugely significant, and recovering from such tactics wouldn't be easy.

Since it callously completely disregarded the livelihood of the Empire's subjects, the people would definitely become disaffected.

They were not being protected.

On the contrary, the resentment that their food and drinking water was taken from them would be perpetually inherited. If one considered that effect, politically speaking there was no way they could easily do such a thing. But...

"It seems that the tax revenue will be in decline for a while."

Earl Marcus just muttered about the people's suffering with a way of speaking that treated it as a slight hindrance.

The Emperor just responded, "There is no other way. I suppose we will call off a few garden parties. That, and it would be best to postpone the construction of the imperial villa."

For the powerful empire, things like the people's suffering and popular opinion meant little to the family.

"Although I do imagine that Marquis Carzel and the like will raise a fuss."

"Why do I have to pay attention to Marquis Carzel's mental stability?" the Emperor scowled, not wanting to deal with that man any longer. He needed to quell the urge to have him killed by his royal guards.

"Although it may be needless fear, he has shown signs of conspiring with other senators to have the counsel put into operation a state of emergency."

The senate's final counsel was the empire's highest means of making decisions. If the senate declared it, they could even dismiss the Emperor. Historically, no small number of emperors had lost their status in accordance with the senate's final counsel.

"Hmph, how amusing. Then it would be best to see that they like things for a while. It may be a good chance to round up people who would sympathize with such a plan. It would be best to order my spies to investigate."

Earl Marcus was briefly astonished, but then immediately bowed reverently.

The Emperor's weapon against the senate's final counsel would be the crime of treason. He ordered that his spies fabricate evidence under the guise of collecting evidence. Such was the only way to counter such a threat against his rule.

"There are many who mistake the granted honor of being a senator for a right. While a bit troublesome, I must put matters to order with something like this."

The Emperor muttered that and commanded Earl Marcus to withdraw.

Earl Marcus bowed his head respectfully. But then, a dignified voice that resounded like a bell broke the peaceful mood as it echoed through the imperial court.

"Your Majesty!"

The person who walked briskly up to the Emperor's throne was the imperial princess-in other words, one of the Emperor's daughters.

The girl demonstrated peerlessly splendid courtesy as she went down on one knee, and she had flame-like vermillion hair along with white porcelain skin that was wrapped in a white silk garment. Quite a beautiful girl who appeared to be aroud her early twenties at best.

"What is it?"

"Although our country is in such a critical state of affairs, what is your Majesty doing? Have you gone senile?" the princess asked, not hiding her discontent for which has taken it's place on her beautiful face.

Thorned sharp words were emitted from her elegant face.

Realizing that even here there was someone who mistook grace for privilege, Emperor Molto smiled faintly. The imperial princess's tongue was as sharp as always.

"Your Highness, on just what business are you causing trouble as a relative of his Majesty?"

The Emperor's third daughter Pina Co Lada had such a physical form that she would be called a peerless work of art if she just sat down and smiled. But if you gave her room to talk, she would speak words so sharp that a timid man would faint on the spot, and that was what made her name known throughout the empire.

"Obviously, it's about those bandits occupying Alnus Hill. I heard that Alnus Hill was still in the enemy's control. I cannot help but think from looking at your Majesty's calm appearance that you have not heard what happened to the Legio VII Claudia Pia Fidelis. Marcus, didn't you report the truth to his Majesty?" Pina asked, wondering why they never received word about what was going on.

"Your Highness, I certainly did give the report. The Legio VII Claudia Pia Fidelis did suffer heavy losses, but they splendidly defended against the enemy's invasion of the Falmat continent. Thanks to the brave men of the Empire who did not hold their own lives precious, the enemy who received both mental and psychological damage are shivering in fear and maintaining their firm strategic position, hibernating like bears. Enemies like that are no threat to us at all."

At Earl Marcus's explanation, Pina went "fuhn" and turned her face away as she made a declaration.

"Because you have no concubines or children, you know the phrase 'smooth words make smooth ways'. You know that, and needless to say, you even know the method to rephrase the crushingly massive defeat in the north into a success or victory." she said, "That is the truth."

"So you plan to sacrifice the truth and paint lies in the history books?" she asked accusingly. Ever since being a little girl, Pina always knew the Empire was the force which held together the land which they live on.

To see the Empire removed from power would simply make things worse.

"If you speak like that, there is no way for me to give you a reply."

"You crafty courtier! Is not our holy Empire being suppressed by those fellows on Alnus Hill? Just how did our defense succeed? The truth is just being buried beneath the piles of corpses." Pina retorted.

"We certainly did take some damage..."

"Then what should we do from here on?"

Earl Marcus feigned ignorance as he detailed a series of operations, starting from recruiting soldiers and going all the way to training and organizing them. Pina clicked her tongue at being told the process of recruiting, training, and organizing soldiers that everyone related to the army would already know.

"If we started now, just how many years do you think it would take? Do you think that the enemies on Alnus Hill would just stay still during that time?"

The princess questioned the ignorance of the courier.

"Your Highness, the Imperial Princess. I feel that way as well. However, given the fact that we have lost soldiers, we have no other choice but to steadily continue to recruit soldiers, train them, and rebuild our army. This is true of various countries that lose soldiers. Even if we gather the Allied Federation of Armed Forces, the time it takes to reconstruct the army will be proportional to national strength. Even if the other countries reconstruct their armies later than us, we cannot speed them up."

Pina was disappointed in his way of speaking.

"With that leisurely attitude, we will not be able to stop the enemy's invasion."

The Emperor sighed as he raised his hand slightly to stop the pair's verbal battle.

As he had guessed, Pina had a tendency to quarrel with others. As is often the case with those who don't bear any responsibilities, she was someone who did nothing but criticize and had no constructive views. Whenever she offered one, it was like a fantastic story. She was unable to agree with anyone who respected tradition and social status.

And then when something happened, she would go to people with practical ability who are thinking, "This is tough, what should I do, what should I do..."

And corner them to the point that they yell.

"Then what do you expect me to do!?"

For example, in this situation, there was no other option but to do as Earl Marcus said and steadily rebuild the army. Buying time for that was political diplomacy. That was why the Emperor assembled the Allied Federation of Armed Forces, and his plan succeeded because they were tricked into going after the destruction of the Empire's legion.

The slightly disconcerted Emperor faced his daughter and spoke.

"Pina. If you say that, then even I must impart my thoughts to you."

"Thank you, your Majesty the Emperor."

"However, there is much we do not know regarding the enemies gathered at Alnus Hill. On that note, would you consider going there and taking a look?"

"Personally?"

"Indeed. The Empire is now in the process of rebuilding, and currently lacks reconnaissance soldiers. There is no way we can pull out the soldiers who have been distributed to various positions within the country. Even if we recruit new ones, as Earl Marcus said, it would take time to be able to make use of them. Now that I think about it, right now, those in your order of knights are the only ones with an above-average degree of training who are not occupied with something. That is... assuming that what you do isn't just playing soldiers."

The Emperor met her gaze as though to provoke her, and Pina bit her lips shut.

The journey to Alnus Hill would be a ten-day trip on horseback, one way.

That place was the dangerous front lines, the ground on which more than tens of thousands of soldiers were slaughtered like cattle. He was saying that she should go there with just herself and and her order of knights.

Furthermore, it wasn't for a magnificent battle, it was for a straightforward scouting trip.

Although she could only think of it as an honor for her order of knights that was normally ridiculed as playing soldiers to be given a duty, she was dissatisfied with its subject. And beyond that, her order of knights had zero actual combat experience. Could she and her subordinates really complete a dangerous mission?

The Emperor's glance conveyed, "If you dislike it, do not meddle."

"Well, then. Do you accept my decree?" her father asked.

Pina clenched her teeth, but lifted her head as though resolved. And then...

"I have certainly received it."

...she declared, after which she courteously thanked the Emperor.

"Umu, I look forward to your accomplishments."

"Well then, Father. I shall be on my way."

And thus Pina turned her back to the throne.

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 7: The Elf**_

* * *

 **Man, I'm getting the ball rolling with this story after leaving it for so long!**

 **For that I'm sorry and I'm making good on my promise to get this one moving since I have big ideas to where this story can go, especially hoping you guys will like the twist and turns I use for it, so just be prepared.**

 **Until next time guys, have great day and I'll see you guys later!**


	7. Chapter 7

" _ **There is no such thing as accident; it is fate misnamed.**_ " - Napoleon Bonaparte

* * *

 ** _Victory!_**

 _Since entering this new world, the Republic military has fought off numerous attempts by the people of this land to take the hill which they occupied. Now, Raiden's clone commander; captain Iron was sent out on a mission to scout the area past the hill and valley and to make contact with the people._

 _It was important they do so in order to make peace with those on the other side as events across the gate in the world of the Republic and Confederacy of Independent Systems. Things unlike any have happened, making the galaxy wonder what was going to happen._

 _The Jedi council was now concerned with what was happening with someone like general Grievous still out there._

 _Whatever happens..._

 _The whole galaxy was watching..._

 **~o0o~**

 **Coruscant, Republic Capital**

 **Few Days Later**

Chancellor Palpatine was still trying to wrap his head around what he was told by members of the Jedi council a few moments ago.

To hear that their forces met two enemy armies, one which was already waiting for their arrival while the other was sent just a few days later, it was quite frightening to see the hundreds of thousands of soldiers which were slaughtered by the clone army.

Granted, he saw the kind of weapons these people wielded...

' _How pathetic it must be to see swords, spears, and shield, going up against the advanced weaponry of the clones? Though I am quite curious as to how large the total army of this so called 'Empire' has in it's ranks._ '

Swinging the chair he was sitting in, the leader of the Republic looked towards the horizon in the distance. The air was filled with hundreds of speeders going to and from wherever it was they needed to go.

It had been a few days since he ordered his new squadron of soldiers to take care of... issues which may come back to bite him in the ass, to say the least.

The door to his office opened, making the chancellor wonder who it was that entered his office.

Once he turned around, the man faced someone he didn't expect to see for quite some time, especially since the chancellor was on the capital of the Republic. Standing in front of him was the Sith he kept hidden from those outside the leadership of the Confederacy.

"Ah, my apprentice!" exclaimed Palpatine, "I figure things must be going well on your side of the galaxy, I might assume?"

The sith-in-training walked to the desk that the chancellor, or in reality his master, and sat down on one of the chairs.

He soon answered his master's question, "Yes, the CIS are currently a mess at the moment. With Grievous trying his best to hold together what's left of their forces, which are currently spread thin across the galaxy. However, the idea of the gate as a way to attack this world is still something Grievous wants to find, if possible."

"Hmm..."

Chancellor Palpatine, or Lord Sidious as the former was his alias, began to ponder the idea of finding another gate of this kind.

One which would allow for the Confederacy to launch an attack on this planet with whatever forces they have remaining. Though it's quite a risk to use what's left of their military forces and go for an all out attack on the Republic.

While the idea is... amusing, but it isn't what the Sith Lord wants to happen.

The war was coming to an end, and to his joy, no one suspected this end like he did. However, the older man realized that if his plan is to succeed, he needs to find someone powerful to replace the position which his former apprentice once filled until he was killed by...

"That's it." Palpatine said.

"What is it master?" asked the young Sith.

His master didn't say anything as the idea of who could replace his apprentice made me wonder why he didn't think of it sooner. Someone who Palpatine had come to know over the last few years or so with the way the war had went.

"There's an issue which I must take care of Shoijjoin. I must ask you to return to Upatau and continue watching over the Separatist for the time being, it is important you do so. There's something telling that there might be an advantage within the ranks of the Jedi which could accelerate the plan."

The young Sith was curious as to what his master was thinking, but didn't ask.

It wasn't his place to do so. Following his master's wish, the young Sith got up and started leaving the office. He knew it was dangerous for him to be on this planet with the Jedi council having some of it's prominent members here, though his master made sure they couldn't detect him.

After all...

The Jedi were blind as to what was going on in the big picture here...

Once which the galaxy still couldn't see. It was only a select few like Sidious and Shoijjoin that could see what the future of the galaxy would look like, one where the Sith would crush the Jedi order once and for all.

As the young Sith left the room, leaving the Sith Lord to his own thoughts...

Which were all about the one Jedi who he's been getting to know these last few years since the start of the Clone Wars. Someone who was seen as the chosen one, the individual who would bring balance to the Force.

Someone who the Sith Lord needs, one who would cause the demise of the Republic as well as Jedi order.

 _Anakin Skywalker..._

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 7: The Elf**

"This world doesn't seem any different than most where we're from, right captain?"

Captain Iron and his recon team have spent the last two days traveling along the dirt roads, ones which the AT-TE traveled over in ease. The walker was built to take punishment as well as being mobile enough to support the clones in just about any environment they fought in.

It was simple really, make weapons and vehicles as effective as clones and the army would be a terrifying one.

As they, for the most part, remained in silence as they were to visit a few villages, which were reported by scout droids to be near what many presumed to be the 'Empire' territory. Looking towards the sky above him, captain Iron saw a blue sky filled with white clouds spread across the endless space.

' _Strange to see a sight like this..._ '

The captain was used to seeing death and destruction as the galaxy was experiencing a war across the entire galaxy, one which forced just about every world to pick a side or be forced. Quite a world to live in, while the same couldn't be said here.

Instead, it was merely an empire which ruled over this land with an iron fist and one that no one could challenge.

Quite impressive if the captain had to be honest. They used fear and a strong military force in order to bring the other nations to their knees, the same nations which were reported to have been defeated by the Republic not too long ago.

Looking at his own unit, the captain had about a dozen or so men in his force. Roughly all of them has had experience in combat, some more than others, but they all knew what they were doing for the most part.

Something he was quite happy with.

Just as they were approaching a hill, captain Iron spoke on his communication device, "Alright! I need two walkers on the hill right now."

Once he gave the order, two of the two legged walkers called the WT-RT, started moving quicker than the other units and approached the hill. Within moments, the clones were scanning the nearby area to make sure there wasn't any surprise waiting for them.

"Sir! There's a village not too far away from the hill's position!" the clone reported.

Wanting to make sure the clone was correct, captain Iron raced forward with his vehicle and stood in between the two currently overlooking the hill. Using the advanced optics of his helmet, the clone commander saw the village the men were talking about.

It was relatively small for a village with a few buildings at best. Most of them looked dilapidated as it appeared some were on the verge of collapse, making one of the clones next to Iron shake his head in disgust at the sight.

"Geez, you think this government would at least help these people for crying out loud." the clone muttered, feeling quite irritated at the sight.

Captain Iron raised an eyebrow at this, "What's the issue Hotshot?" he asked.

The clone - now named Hotshot - currently looked at his clone commander in shock, with the helmet covering his expression, "Sir! Look at that place, just seeing this place from here tells us what we need to know."

"And what would that be soldier?" captain Iron asked, wanting to see where his fellow brother was going with this.

Hotshot pointed at the village, "About how poorly these people are treated! The state of the buildings can tell us that these people are pretty much on their own."

The captain understood what his soldier was trying to tell him. From here the state in which the village was kept should the signs of negliengence as they most likely are left to survive on their abilities and that also means defending themselves from threats outside.

Even Iron knew that much, but that isn't what their job is.

All they were sent out to do is make contact with the locals and find out information regarding this empire which ruled this world. That was it, the clones weren't here to help the civilians if that was what Hotshot was trying to get at.

"Look, I know where you're coming from with this, but that isn't our job Hotshot. We were sent to look for information and make contact with the locals, that was all we were told by general Dakkar and Kenobi to do." explained Iron.

The younger clone didn't seem to fight back, though he looked at the rest of their small recon force moving along ahead of them.

Iron sighed, "We're soldiers," he said while putting a hand on Hotshot's shoulder, "That's what we were intended to be, nothing more nothing less. Got me?"

Realizing what his commander was telling him, the younger clone nodded as Iron was content with that. Soon the three clone troopers caught up with the rest of the recon team as they were approaching the village.

As they were nearing the village, captain Iron realized the locals may be terrified by the sight of the AT-TE and decided to leave it some distance away until the locals were comfortable around the clone troopers. Once Iron picked a few other clones to travel with him to the village while the rest guarded the tank, they moved on foot towards the settlement.

Nearing closer to the settlement, captain Iron and his team of clones decided to leave their weapons holstered, wanting to appear as friendly as possible to the villagers since there's a good chance they've never seen weapons like theirs.

"Alright let's move."

Captain Iron soon gave the order, with the other clones following him as they traveled along the road.

In the distance, the five clone troopers could see a woman in the distance and as they got closer, she looked to be traveling with a young child by the looks of it. Soon the woman and the child turned around and saw the clones in the distance.

An array of emotions passed along her face, from fear to curiosity, emotions which the clones knew were going to be common once the indigenous population saw them. It wasn't long until she made it back to the village with her child.

"Um, sir? Do you think this is a good idea?" asked one of the clones, one which had a few blue tac marks on his armor.

"It's alright Stonewall. I know you're just trying to be cautious but let me handle this. I'll do the talking and you guys try not to scare the locals." instructed Iron as they neared the village.

He understood the fear the clones had about the villagers not wanting to interact with the soldiers, making this mission impossible to complete because of that. Soon they stood in front of the village entrance, a simple wooden gate with strange letters carved into the wood.

"Looks like the locals are a bit prepared for us." said Hotshot.

Just then a voice was heard at the top of the structure, " _Who goes there!_ "

Due to the Republic being able to figure out the language of the locals, this allowed for the clones and Jedi knights to figure out how to communicate with the people of this world. It wasn't nearly as difficult as many thought it would be, but because of the innumerable languages spoken across the galaxy, they simply needed to find the right combination of words in order to understand the speech of the soldiers.

Allowing for the clones to speak in the native language of these people using the helmet to translate their words into the native's tongue.

" _Hello there! We are, uh, soldiers of another army who have come to meet those who live here._ " captain Iron responded, waiting for whoever it was hiding up at the top of the gate to open it for them.

As he wanted, an individual could be seen at the top of the gate, a young man who looked to be a teenager at best.

" _How do I know this isn't some trick to kill the people of my village?! What reason do I have to trust men like you? With your strange white and gray armor!_ " the young man asked numerous questions, though it was obvious to see the fear in his eyes.

Iron was about to respond when Hotshot started speaking, "Look kid, how about you open the door and prove to you that we won't hurt any of you, that sound good to you?"

The teenager looked to be in deep thought, it was here that the young man disappeared from the top of the gate and a few moments passed for the clones, waiting to see what was going to happen. Just as captain Iron was about to scold the soldier for scaring the kid away, they heard a sounds of grunting on the other side.

And the gate opened...

Hotshot looked back at his captain and chucked, "See captain, you just need to be a little forceful at times."

Shaking his head, captain Iron knew Hotshot didn't always follow protocol when it comes to the hierarchy of the chain of command, but he was a good soldier and did what he was told. In the end, the clones entered the village and saw the rundown buildings and the numerous structures that looked to be on the verge of collapse.

It was here they witnessed numerous villagers hide within their homes, watching the from the windows as they wondered who these strange soldiers were.

From the small crowd of people still left in the open, an older man appeared and stood in front of the clones.

Irons and the others thought it was safe to assume that this man was the leader of this village simply because of him being one of the older members of the settlement as well as stepping up to meet the clones.

"You must be the leader of this settlement, aren't you?" asked captain Iron.

The man shook his head, " _Y-Yes, I would be the chief of Koda Village. How can I help your... men?_ " he asked, fear slipping into his voice.

"Well, we're soldiers and we were sent here to meet the locals as well as find out what we can of this world, especially any information regarding the major power of this world would be most helpful." Iron explained, "So we were wondering if your people knew anything about this so called... empire?"

The chief paled when hearing the name. Something the clones took notice of quite quickly.

" _We, uh, don't speak about the Empire. They don't tolerate people speaking the truth about them, about how corrupted and tyrannical they've become in recent times since the new emperor was elected. They are, uh, the rulers of the continent, one who has conquered many. Many of the nations are their vassals as well._ " explained the chief, becoming more nervous as they spoke.

" _However..._ " the chief said, " _We've been hearing about the rumors of the Empire being defeated twice by a strange army. One who wields these magic rods which can burn through any armor that the soldiers wear._ "

It was here the clones realized who the man was speaking about.

"Sir, that army they said who defeated the Empire, do you happen to know anything about how those men looked like?" asked Hotshot.

The chief shook his head, " _N-No... we only heard from people passing by. They said they couldn't see because of the dark, but they sounded terrified of what they saw._ " he said, " _A scene which could only be described as hellish! The Empire's soldiers being torn apart by great fire while metal creatures unlike any before cut them down before they could escape the area._ "

Many within the village seem to share the same emotion as the chief, who couldn't hold back. Children cried while the mothers comforted them while fathers couldn't help but look terrified for what could happen to their family.

With the clones taking notice of the sorrow and fear in each individual.

" _All we could see that night was a great amount of smoke rising into the air, hearing the screams of men, animals, and others as they cowered before the power in front of them. It was like an army of demons made themselves present before us..._ "

Hearing more than enough, captain Iron placed a hand on the man's shoulder.

"It's alright sir, you don't have to continue. I think," Iron stated, "We've gotten what we needed. Don't worry sir, if you ever need anything don't be afraid to come looking for us."

Iron reached into his pack and took out a disc-shaped object and placing it in the hands of the chief, who looked confused as to what it was.

The clone commander soon erased the confusion, "This is a device that you can use to contact us. You will be able to speak to us, regardless of where we are in the world and it works simply by pressing this button on the side of the device."

Once he showed the chief how the device worked, the clones said their farewells and left the village. Making the trip back to where they left the others as well as the vehicles for their recon mission. It didn't take a genius to realize all of them felt the same way when they saw the expression on the villagers, fear was one which common among them.

"Sir? Should we contact the generals and tell them about what had happened?" asked one of the clones, one who went by the name of Sector, and who was by far the least experience of them all with a few missions under his belt.

The captain only sighed, letting it known what he was doing when he pressed a button on his wrist.

A few moments passed when they heard a familiar voice, " _Captain? Is that you?_ "

"Yes, it's me Cody. Do you know where the generals are at the moment?" captain Iron asked.

" _Yeah, they just left a few moments ago, why?_ " commander Cody asked.

All Iron did was look around for a few moments until his eyes landed on the village, making it quite easy for the clones to understand what he was about to explain.

"Well... it's a long story." Iron said.

 **~o0o~**

 **Star Base**

 **Minutes Later**

Both Raiden and Obi-Wan were currently walking through the structure which was currently acting as their hanger as they received word about the first batch of gunships being set-up. With the capability to launch operations from search and rescue to attacks, the Jedi knights realized the unfair advantage they have over the enemy.

However...

It was one that Raiden enjoyed, knowing the enemy didn't have a counter for the kind of weapons they possess though both him and his former master realized the circumstances surrounding the multi-national army they defeated not too long ago.

One involving someone pulling the strings and trying to keep their power from the looks of it.

As the two Jedi knights watched the clone troopers as they were moving supplies, weapons, and ammunition from place to place. The scene was that of a well oil machine working to it's full potential. Soon the two of them heard a voice call out to them.

"General Kenobi, Dakkar!"

Looking to the sound of the voice, they saw a clone trooper with familiar yellow paint on his armor, it was commander Cody.

Obi-Wan was the first to greet him, "Cody, nice to see you. What's wrong?" the older Jedi knight asked.

The clone trooper saluted them quickly, "Well we got our first transmission from captain Iron and his recon team since they left the base a few days ago. He's asking for the two of you, especially you general Dakkar."

"Well? Let's not keep him waiting." replied Raiden.

Soon the Jedi knights and clone commander made their way to the command center. Upon entering the make-shift command center for the time being, it was a circular platform surrounded by computers, maps, and other such things needed to run a successful military operation.

Clones were operating the numerous stations, working to keep the operation going at full speed.

In the middle of the platform was a raised table, one which currently presented a holographic image of captain Iron without his helmet at the moment. Like most clones, the captain didn't look any different than his brothers, though he had a scar that traveled along his right cheek.

" _Generals._ " captain Iron said as he saluted them, " _I'm afraid we've come into contact with the locals and gotten some information regarding the area as well as the current power ruling over this land we're attacking._ "

Raiden nodded, "Good, but you sound... strange. What happen?"

The captain remained quiet, almost like he was gather his thoughts, " _Like I said, we spoke with a village and from what we've seen and heard from them... it looks as if the locals already formed their opinion of us._ "

His words rang through the minds of everyone, including some of the clones working at their stations.

The youngest of the two Jedi knights spoke up, "I'm guessing it isn't so nice."

Iron nodded, " _Yes, most of them looked quite fearful of meeting us and while they didn't figure out that we were the army who defeated the Empire's forces, they were still quite hesitant to disclose any information about the area._ "

"Well this puts a wrench in our plans." Obi-Wan stated as he looked to be pondering the current situation they were in.

With the locals already terrified of them, it was going to be difficult to change their opinion of them if it isn't anything drastic. For the meanwhile, they needed to focus on finding more information about the region as well as political landscape of this world.

Lack of information was going to present a problem to the Republic in the long run.

If they don't know how the government of this world does business? Or how they go about running their nation? These were legitimate questions which needed to be answer and since Padme was currently in Coruscant as she was feeling ill at the moment, something Raiden figured had to do with her pregnancy.

And as time went on, her stomach increased and made things more difficult for her to be around.

Meaning that the Republic needed to have her sent back due to the kind of environment she would be dealing with. While most of the senate were content with this decision, some took it worse than others and wanted to replace her position on this operation, but they were all rejected by the chancellor.

Saying that they would continue the mission until they felt like a senator was necessary to send, one who would best represent the Republic and for what it stood for.

Returning to the problem ahead of them, Raiden came to a difficult decision.

"Alright Iron. I want you to continue on your mission to scout the area, but I want you to keep some distance away from most settlements. For the time being, the idea of making friends with the locals might have to wait for the meanwhile." Raiden said.

Obi-Wan sighed, "Yes, I agree with Raiden on this case," he stated, "We need to focus on finding anything we can about this world. I trust you'll complete your mission captain."

The clone commander saluted, " _Yes sir._ "

Once the image of captain Iron was gone from the table, it left a sorrow mood among the two Jedi knights. With the people of this world already terrified of what they were capable of doing on the battlefield, it was going to be more difficult than ever to make friends.

' _Now what?_ ' thought Raiden as he looked towards the sun which was setting behind the horizon.

 **~o0o~**

 **Somewhere in the Empire**

 **Couple Hours Later**

Sounds of heavy footsteps could be heard as more nimble, but equally heavy footsteps, were heard traveling on the dirt road. It was quite the sight as night fell over the region, leaving the clones in darkness.

"Captain, what are we supposed to do now? Find information with the way the villagers were acting? I don't think so." Stonewall said on the radio.

The clone commander wasn't in the mood for any conversations as he looked to what was in front of him. In front of them was miles of road, open terrain on both sides of them with the occasional patch of woods from time to time.

A sight they've haven't seen in so long.

Peace.

To see a land not devastated by war was something else, almost serene. Iron was trying his best to figure out how to make them look better in front of others because if Coda Village was merely the first of many, then this was going to a struggle.

Just as they continued moving along the road, the red and gray walker stood out as it's lights were making it possible for the driver to see.

Behind the massive tank were three walkers manned by the clones and two more in the front, where Iron currently was at the moment. From the scans they got from the probe, there was supposed to be a village in a forest not too far from their position.

From what they knew, the population were humanoids as well.

Nothing out of the ordinary. Since they left the village, most of the clones didn't say a word.

Most of them were stuck with images of the terrified people, from children to even the elderly, making it quite clear that their presence was felt and rejected by those who lived there. Strange to see expressions like that, thought captain Iron.

In all of his time fighting for the Republic, that was the first time he's seen people react the way they did towards them.

Back in their own world, there were only two expressions they've seen from the populations of other worlds; either hate or love for them.

Something the clones were used after fighting for so long. They understood the galaxy viewed them in different lights, some hailed them as heros for saving them from the droid army while others cursed them in their native tongue.

Quite the treatment they've experienced throughout their careers as soldiers.

Without even realizing it, Stonewall's voice was heard over the radio, "Captain Iron, we're nearing the turn that's going to lead us to the forest where this village is."

"At least the information from the maps are good." muttered Hotshot over the radio.

Over the course of their travels, they passed a few more settlements, some were in better shape than others while some looked as if they've been abandoned for years. The contrast was unbelievable to some of the younger clones.

While for veterans of the Clone Wars like captain Iron and Stonewall, this sight was common as they've fought on various worlds.

Some more deadly than others and some more tame. The vast size of the galaxy made it possible for something like this, it was also one of the reasons why their own home world was lost to the rest of the galaxy for quite some time.

Just as they made the turn at the stream, the clone troopers soon caught sight of something strange.

In the distance was a rising column of black smoke over a vast area, letting them know that the size of the fire was quite large and spread across a large area. The clones quickened their pace and found themselves on top of a hill across the stream and seeing a sight quite common to them.

A forest, the one which contained the settlement they were heading for, was currently burning down at the moment.

Looking at the forest covered in flames, some of the clone troopers remembered seeing something like this when they launched an invasion on Ryloth in order to take it back from the droid army who was occupying the world.

Within that battle, there were villages filled with women and children that were bombed, causing the deaths of thousands by the time the Republic liberated the world.

The clones disembarked from their vehicles and walked to the edge of the hill, which was overlooking the forest fire.

"Man... what did this?" asked a clone trooper who was getting out of the driver seat of the AT-TE.

"I don't know Boomer... but it must be pretty dangerous." Hotshot said as he and the other clones kept a finger close to the trigger of their blasters. It was here they realized how dangerous this world was if they aren't careful.

As captain Iron was using the advanced optics in his helmet to scan the area, trying his best to look for the cause of the forest fire. He soon got his answer in the form of a loud roar some distance away from them.

Facing the general direction of the noise, most of the clones saw what it was that attacked and burned down the village.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me!" One of the clones yelled.

A giant creature that looked like a massive lizard with bright red scales covered it's whole body, adding to it's terrifying appearance, along with massive wings to carry the body. All the clones looked on in fascination at the creature that was setting the whole forest below on fire.

Stonewall used a pair of scanners to see closer, "There are creatures like this roaming here unchecked, a little...irresponsible I think."

Hotshot retorted, "You think, how would you feel about a Krayt just roaming around our home, tearing up the place."

Since Stonewall was one of the more older clone's on the recon team, it was expected that one of the younger soldiers would try to make themselves seem better than the veteran, and it lead to constant arguments between the two. Making captain Iron have to break up the fights from time to time.

"Do these huge Krayts have a habit of breathing fire into deserted forests?"

Boomer asked, thinking there was something more to this.

The men were trying to their best to make sure the creature wouldn't spot them as the reason why the creature attacked this area was for food, or so thought most of the clone troopers. Though the men were tempted to find out what kind of damage the scales on the creature could take.

A few moments passed by and the creature continued to attack whatever it was that was inside the forest.

Captain Iron continued to watch the creature spew fire from it's mouth, burning everything in it's path as if they were a nuisance to the creature's very existence. However, the captain couldn't help but feel as if something was wrong.

With the creature around however, there was no chance Iron would risk the lives of his men on a whim.

"How long do you think until the thing leaves?" asked Boomer, wondering when it would be safe for them to check out the forest.

"I don't know Boomer," said Iron, "But I do know that we're going to have to wait for the night to pass if there's any chance of this thing leaving the area."

He then looked at everyone watching the forest, most of the curious as to what they were going to do in order to get rid of the creature. With little information regarding the world, including the creatures which inhabit it, they had no idea what was going to happen.

"Find a suitable position to take cover and see how it goes. After whatever the hell this thing is leaves, we will enter the forest and render aid to any survivors."

It was here that they were going to see if there were any survivors. Realizing that this forest was the same one the probe droid told them had a village deep inside, a place where the clones could have tried finding out more information regarding the status of this world...

"Let's hope they aren't all dead." muttered captain Iron.

 **~o0o~**

 **Same Forest**

 **Few Hours Later**

In the end, Iron's group only entered the forest the following morning when the fire-breathing Krayt left.

The fire burned through the night, spewing forth smog that would hinder any reconnaissance. Thanks to the rain that fell at midnight, the forest fire finally died down and they could enter the forest. While the clones were inside the forest, the view was completely clear. The leaves were burned and the trunks of the trees were reduced to charcoal.

Wisps of smoke rose from the blackened ground. Residual heat still remained in the ground, and they could feel the heat from the soles of their combat boots.

"It would be a miracle if there were any survivors."

Irons sadly agreed with Stonewall, but he still headed for the village anyway. After a two hour hike, the team finally made it to a clearing without any trees. If the forest wasn't burned down, it would have taken at least half a day to make it here without the AT-TE or the smaller walkers.

Surveying the area, Irons could see signs of several buildings. If he looked closely enough the clone commander could see several blackened human-shaped objects in certain parts of the village. Instead of Human-shaped objects, it would be more appropriate to call them burned mummies.

"Umm... captain Irons, these are.."

"Don't say it, Boomer." The captain said.

"I don't understand how the hell these people let this thing roam free."

Boomer rubbed his abdomen as he looked around him. Watching out for attacks, they slowly walked around the remains of the village. All the buildings were burned. Everything above the stone floor was destroyed, reducing all of it into piles of rubble. Blackened corpses lay under these structures.

"Stonewall, take Sector and Fox and search the east. Hotshot, Boomer; we will take the west."

"Search? For what?"

In response to Hotshot's question, Irons shrugged and answered: "What do you think? Survivors."

After searching about for sometime after the forest fire calmed, they confirmed that there were probably no survivors in this village. Irons took off his helmet and wiped away his sweat as he sat beside a well. The other clones were still searching through the things used by the villagers here and were wandering about.

Immediately, Boomer jogged over to him with a device in his hand.

"Err... captain Irons, sir, there are three large buildings and twenty-nine mid-sized to small buildings in this village. We confirmed twenty seven bodies, that s too few. Some might have been crushed by the debris when the buildings were burning."

"Let's say there are three people per building, there should be ninety people in this village. Including larger families, there should be about a hundred here. They were either wiped out, or hiding somewhere, although that possibility is very low though." The medic estimated.

"How brutal."

"Yeah. I will need to report the existence of huge krayt-like beings that attack villages back to base."

"During the gate defensive battles there were enemy riding Krayt-like beings too. Those were much smaller than what we saw yesterday, but their scales could withstand the impact of most weapons we use. We were able to pierce through most of the scale with one shot, but it usually take two to three to kill one."

The breadth of Boomer's knowledge made captain Iron raise an eyebrow. He had heard rumors about the collection of these Krayt carcasses and the hardness tests performed on their scales, but he didn't know about the results. Under normal conditions, a rifle could pierce through most super-battle droids. Which meant the scales of these Krayts were harder than that.

"Just like a super-battle droid."

"That's right."

Iron realized he was running low on water after placing his mouth onto his bottle. After swirling it around for a moment, he looked around and realized there was a well behind him. Grabbing the bucket beside him, he prepared to lower it into the well and pull it up with the rope.

"Looks like we need to investigate where the new Krayt's nest is, and its area of activity."

Saying that, he dropped the bucket into the well.

When he did that, he heard a sharp donk .

"Hmmm?"

Normally, they should be the sound of something dropping into the water. He was expecting a splashing sound instead, so Irons looked into the well in surprise. Boomer leaned forward and looked down curiously too as the younger clone mumbled

"What is that?"

 **~o0o~**

 **Same Area**

 **Couple Days Earlier**

 _And then_

 _There was a young girl with long golden hair and a bump on her head floating in the water like a puppet with its strings cut._

 _"Tuka, get up quick."_

 _The young girl was awakened by her father from her dreams._

 _"Father, what is it? I was sleeping well."_

 _She got up and said while rubbing her eyes. Looking around, she saw the brilliant sunlight shining into her room._

 _Being stirred from her afternoon nap made her dizzy. But she still noticed that the expression of her father who woke her was strange. She could hear noise of people scampering and shouting, the village was in chaos. She understood from such an atmosphere that something big was happening._

 _"What is happening?"_

 _Tuka found the answer by herself. Outside the window, the figure of a giant dragon could be seen in the sky. There weren't any dragons nesting around here, so this was the first time she had ever seen one. Of course, Tuka learned about them from her father s general lessons when she was young._

 _"Is that a Flame Dragon?"_

 _"That's right."_

 _Her father was holding a bow, the common weapon of the Elves. And he was taking out the valuable arrows from the drawer, ones with mithril arrow head and feathers._

 _'Is father going to fight?' Tuka reached for her trusted bow on reflex._

 _"Please don't."_

 _However, her father stopped her verbally._

 _"Why?"_

 _"You need to escape."_

 _"I want to fight too." She said, wanting to be of use._

 _"No, if anything happens to you, your mother will tell me off."_

 _Her father will only mention her departed mother when he absolutely needed her to listen. But the daughter who was already matured mentally rejected him with a smile._

 _If the opponent is a Flame Dragon, it doesn't matter where I run to. And it is better to have one more soldier right?_

 _It was said that the favorite food of the carnivorous Flame Dragons were the meat of Elves and Humans. If they don't defeat the Flame Dragon here, it would pursue them by smell no matter where they ran. No matter how hard the earthbound Elves or Humans run, they won t be able to escape the dragon flying in the sky._

 _Outside the window, the warriors were shooting their arrows into the air or summoning wind and water spirits to attack the Flame Dragon. However, they were basically ineffective._

 _Instead, the fire spewed by the Flame Dragon burned the people, making them scream. Women and children trying to escape were caught in the flame and reduced to a crisp. Their death throes shot into Tuka s ears, making her furrow her brows._

 _"It's dangerous in here, let's move outside!"_

 _The father grabbed Tuka s hand, while Tuka held on to her bow and arrows tightly. Harrowing screams filled the air. When Tuka came out from her house, she saw the girl she grew up with torn apart by the fangs of the Flame Dragon._

 _"Yuno!"_

 _Her dear friend was eaten. Coming into terms with that fact, Tuka readied her bow swiftly. She might be young, but she was an Elf who was great with bow since birth, and wasn't weak. She pulled the string with all her strength and released, but her arrow was deflected._

 _Aside from Tuka, the other Elven warriors fired countless arrows at the Flame Dragons, but they were all blocked by the heavy dragon scales without doing any damage. After chewing and swallowing the Elven girl, the Flame Dragon turned its giant eyes, picking its next prey._

 _"Yu, Yuno she, Yuno."_

 _The moment the Flame Dragon looked at her, Tuka was overwhelmed with terror. She couldn't move even though she wanted to escape, couldn't speak even though she wanted to scream. Just locking eyes with the dragon made her freeze in fear. Tuka looked as if she had lost her soul, even her will to escape was gone without a trace._

 _"Tuka, No!"_

 _Her father shot his arrow as he summoned the spirits._

 _"Ainu, uur nya pilin o poldore varyar ilya!"_

 _With the aid of the wind spirit, the glowing arrow flew towards the eye of the Flame Dragon. That instant, the howl of the Flame Dragon shook the air. It made all of them wonder whether the shockwave would tear all the living creatures in the surrounding apart._

 _"The eye! Aim for the eye!"_

 _The warriors concentrated their arrows towards the head of the Flame Dragon. Shooting the grounded dragon was fine, but aiming for the eye of a flying dragon was difficult even for Elves who were master archers. The Flame Dragon switched its target to the elf that hurt it. Using giant pillars of flame, it burned the village and tore the warriors to shreds with its claws and fangs._

 _It swiped, it stomped and it swallowed._

 _"Tuka, you must run!"_

 _The father roared at his daughter. But his daughter just stood there motionlessly._

 _Her gentle father had never spoken so loudly before, he was just a good and meek father normally. However, during such moments of crisis When he needed to be courageous and violent, he could do so as well. Before his daughter was caught between the jaws of the dragon, the father tackled her away. He then picked her up and sprinted._

 _"Incoming!"_

 _Voices of the warrior mixed together just like a choir._

 _Some of the many arrows hit the gaps of the dragon scale, mouth and the base of the claws. However, the dragon was fearless as its huge body descended. The father said to his daughter._

 _"You must hide in here, alright?"_

 _He then threw his daughter into the well._

 _The last thing she saw before she was thrown in was a giant maw and sharp claws closing onto her father's back. She spent a long time in the well._

 _The burning village and forest could be heard clearly. The ash drifted into the well along with the roars and screams of warriors. Being submerged waist deep in the cold water made her shiver. She was afraid, tense, uneasy and her tears kept flowing out._

 _Before she realized it, the noise stopped._

 _What she could hear was her breathing and heart beating, as well as the rippling of the water. The blue sky had turned black before she knew it. But somehow, the area around the well was still brightly lit. The fire burning the village shone into the well._

 _She didn't know how much time had passed when it started to rain. Her entire body was soaked, the water drenched her face and got into her eyes. But she couldn't move her gaze away from the sky._

 _"Ah Tuka, are you okay?"_

 _Her father showed his face while saying this. She had already seen this hallucinations several times. However, she didn't hear anyone no matter how long she waited. The disgusting idea that everyone was already dead appeared in her mind, crushing her heart._

 _"Father...please save me..."_

 _The well water was cold. The chill, fatigue and hunger siphoned Tuka's strength to stand away. Despair robbed her will away._

 _'At this rate, I guess I am going to die?'_

 _Tuka thought. It was unfathomable, but she wasn't afraid of death. Or maybe, it was better if she just died like this. She would be liberated from fear and unease if she died. Solitude and sadness would dissipate too. Death was the only way she would be free from all this suffering, that s how she felt._

 _Suddenly, she seemed to hear the voice of someone above the well. She looked up despite her murky consciousness. Her vision was then covered completely by something that was like a wooden bucket._

 _A donk sound._

 _Sharp pain similar to breathing in spice deeply through her nose filled her sight with stars. Her consciousness drifted far away._

 **~o0o~**

 **Present Day**

"H...I foun...in th...well."

She felt her cheeks being slapped, and heard quizzing voices. From her blurred vision, she a few individuals standing around her, all of them wearing white armor with gray paint on certain parts of it.

"Fa...ther..." she muttered quietly, making sure no one could hear her.

"Sir, she looks like a human but there are certain features that suggest she isn't one, captain Irons."

Boomer said and Irons replied after seeing the girl they pulled up from the well.

"Looks like it Boomer."

Stonewall and Sector were busy taking off the drenched clothes of the girl who appeared to be sixteen years old, and wrapping a blanket around her. Knowing that the longer she were in those clothes, the higher chance she had of catching something.

Most of the clones started to pack up their equipment back into the AT-TE, realizing that getting this information back to both generals were more important at the moment. Irons could only watch from afar as he coiled ropes up after going into the well.

The water soaked his armor to his mid-waist and it filled up his boots when he was getting the girl out of the well. He sometimes wondered why he did things himself when he could've just asked someone else to do it.

' _Guess we're all soldiers in the end..._ '

The other members used their issued shovels to dig holes for the corpses, or clear the debris to collect artifacts. They gathered furniture and earthenware used in the villagers daily lives, and items that survived the fire such as bows and arrows.

After all, taking video and photographs were important work, they needed to bring this information back.

Sector came over.

"Her body temperature is back to normal. The bump on her head that looked like something from falling some distance, I think she will be fine But what do we do next? We can't stay here too long, and it would be too inhumane to leave this girl here alone."

Sector gave his report in a rather emotionless voice. Unlike the short tempered and brash Hotshot, the clone named Sector was even mannered and quiet in contrast. "Seems like the entire village is destroyed, and we can't just abandon someone we saved. In order to keep her safe, we should take her with us."

Sector continued with his report. Captain Irons knew that the clone had seen quite a few things throughout his time.

"I was pretty sure you would say something like that, Sector."

"About how I presented the medical report to you, sir?"

"Well, that one for sure. Besides we're going to need to go back and give our report on the Krayt we saw last night before it comes near the base."

Irons and the rest of the clones knew they needed to hurry up if they were to beat it back to base..

According to their schedule, they need to visit a few more settlements along their route, but the mysterious girl needed emergency medical care, so captain Irons planned to backtrack and return to base. After setting up the antenna to seek advice from base, he received a reply from general Dakkar to bring the girl back.

"Well Sector, now I'm trusting to keep the girl from dying on us until we reach the base. Now, we need to make it back before anything happens."

After Irons said that, he got back onto the WT-RT seat. While the scouts got back onto their walkers and the rest of the clones climbed inside the AT-TE. In order to care for the elf, Sector was ordered to stay with girl inside the AT-TE.

The third recon platoon set off once again. Their trip back was peaceful as well. It was hard to believe that just this morning a flying Krayt was flying around and happened to have annihilated an entire village.

A clear sky without clouds and vast plains as far as the eyes could see. Nearly half the day s journey was spent in the dust kicked up by the convoy. Compared to the time they came, the recon team was more calm and approached things with a serious manner to it.

"It would be terrible if the Krayt chased after us."

Boomer said over the comms. Until Hot spot responded to that comment.

"Don't say it man, it might just happen."

When he heard those words from the WT-RT he was riding on, Iron couldn't help retorting. "For once, I agree with Hotshot on this one. I don't think we need a gigantic lizard chasing after our asses back to base Boomer."

This was an unpaved road and the suspension of the vehicle was able to absorb the shock completely, so it didn't shake compared to older vehicles used by the galaxy.

Sector took the girl s blood pressure and pulse, then asked while scratching the back of his head.

"What's the normal blood pressure and heart rate for a being like her?"

The medic asked, which left captain Irons dumbfounded, "Her vitals have stabilized, but they are a bit low compared to the norm for just about all humans." Sector reported.

"Is she fine?"

"Her breathing has calmed down, her blood pressure, heart rate and temperature are stable. She is not sweating unnaturally She is fine by, well normal standards."

Sector, who didn't know about the biology of someone like the girl, could only answer this way. Irons knew that the girl wasn't going to last unless they stopped somewhere and gave Sector time to help the girl from dying.

"Let's see if Koda Village is still available to us." captain Iron said.

Just as he activated the communicator he gave to the chief, it turned on and revealed an image of the older man. Before captain Iron could say anything, the chief started speaking, " _Oh thank the gods! Captain! Please we need help!_ "

He was whispering as if he didn't want to be heard by someone.

"What's wrong sir?" asked Iron.

The chief looked terrified as he looked around, " _There are bandits here... and they're going to kill all of us._ "

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 8: Death's Right Hand**_

* * *

 **Damn guys, I didn't think this story would be that popular so I really appreciate the support you guys are giving this story and I hope you guys will continue to.**

 **Since we're getting more and more of the characters which will be pivotal to the story. Now, the story will definitely depart from the GATE storyline and will become original as time goes on and the Star Wars element will come more into play.**

 **So yeah, that's how that's going to work!**

 **If you're confused on the clone's who have names, here are the list of them. And the one's with atcual names.**

 **CT-4581: Stonewall**

 **CC-6754: Hotshot**

 **CC-6345: Fox**

 **CC-5463: Sector**

 **CT-0243: Captain Irons**

 **CC-6254: Boomer**

 **I hope you guys enjoy and have a good day. As well as the list helping you.**


	8. Chapter 8

" _ **Ten soldiers wisely led will beat a hundred without a head.**_ " - Euripides

* * *

 ** _Critical Rescue!_**

 _After captain Iron and his clone troopers made contact with the people of this world, soon realizing the fear they have for the Republic._

 _Now after rescuing a young girl from a forest which was attacked by a dangerous beast which roam this new world the clone troopers have been exploring for the past few days. It has lead them to return to Koda Village to leave the girl..._

 _Soon getting a message from the chief about bandits taking over the settlement._

 _The captain and his men now race to help the people of the village before it was too late..._

 **~o0o~**

 **Before Dawn**

 **Koda Village, Empire's Territory**

"Alright, the current situation in the village is there a number of bandits, armed with swords and other close range weapons, currently holding the people hostage. From what the chief explained to me in the little time he had was that there were around maybe a dozen or so men, all of them former soldiers."

The clone troopers were currently on a nearby hill, one overlooking the village and the surrounding area. Once they received word about the village, they quickly made the decision to help. Even both general Dakkar and Kenobi agreed on that simple task.

Captain Iron was looking at the village, seeing if he could spot any of the bandits within the walls.

As night fell and darkness reigned unchallenged, with the only source of light being the rather bright moon, the clones began to equip their night vision sensors.

Soon all of them were prepared to make the rescue, the clone commander began to explain the plan once more, "For the time being we can't risk using the tank in this operation, it'll alert the enemy that we're coming. We'll have to do this quietly and it starts with you Fox."

The captain looked in the direction of the only scout trooper in their unit, who merely nodded as he held his sniper rifle, "You got it captain."

He soon began explaining the next part, "After Fox gives the okay, the rest of us will move in from both the north and the south side. It'll keep the enemy from picking up on our plan, granted I doubt the enemy has ever faced anything like us."

Most of the clones understood that much.

In this world, the basics of military planning were light years behind what they could do and add in their own natural ability of being the best possible soldiers, it would only make the enemy's life much harder than it already was.

And after fighting the droid army for years, the clones were battle hardened and understood the need to be careful. They couldn't underestimate the enemy simply because of how far they lagged behind.

With the battle for Alnus hill, it was nothing more than slaughter as the clone army took them apart.

Now, the clones needed to perform an operation which needed the most delicate care as the enemy isn't going to be as frightful as they originally were. Desperation and fear drove these men over the edge and turned them into whatever they were now.

Men who were taking what they think is theirs.

It made captain Iron sick, to see soldiers break down and commit atrocities on others, the clone commander would be more than happy to take these bandits out.

A few minutes passed until captain Iron and the clone troopers were all ready to start the rescue mission. Like he said, they left behind the walkers in order to keep the stealth element of the mission and make sure no harm would come to the civilians.

Making their way down the hill, the clones made sure not to make too much noise.

They soon entered a small forest which surrounded the southern end of the settlement, one they were going to use to their advantage.

Sounds of footsteps were heard as the ten clone troopers were making their way through the forest, using their night vision sensors to keep from running into a tree. Clones were trained in all matters of warfare, from hand-to-hand to rescue operations.

If they knew how to do it, then it was a done deal for the clones.

Because in reality, war was all they knew. It was all they were trained to do from birth, many of them never questioned what they did nor think about the future. Every single one of them only thought about the present day.

Within a few minutes, they reached the southern wall of the settlement. The clones hid behind whatever trees, bushes, or fallen logs, they could find and used it as cover. It was here captain Iron saw two men standing near the gate, both of them dressed in rather mismatched armor.

' _Probably picked it off from dead bodies of his fellow soldiers._ ' surmised the clone commander.

Reaching for his communicator, the captain whispered, "Fox, this is Iron, you see the men in front of our position."

A moment passed before he got a response, " _Yes sir, I see them alright._ "

"Take the shot on my order," Iron said.

He needed to time this right because if he messed this up, then the lives of those in the village would be at stake. That was something he wasn't going to risk.

"Fox... take the shot." ordered Iron.

Within moments, the clone's sniper rifle went off twice and soon the two men fell to the ground with their armor not being able to withstand the power behind the rifle. Just as the bodies collapsed to the floor, the others didn't hesitate to move in.

Soon a few more sounds went off, captain Iron assuming Fox was cleaning up any of the bandits who could pose a threat to the rescue operation.

" _Captain Iron, you guys are all clear._ "

Hearing those words, captain Iron sent out the signal for the other team to make their way into the village and start eliminating the enemy forces inside the village, "Bravo team, this is captain Iron... you may began sweeping through."

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 8: Death's Right Hand**

Five of the ten clone troopers started making their way across the outside section of the gate, following their orders to breach the northern area.

Meanwhile, the captain and the four remaining clones needed to be careful as they entered the settlement. They stacked up on both sides of the gate, which was somewhat open, making Iron think about the right time to enter.

Reaching for his communicator on his wrist, "Fox, I need you to be the spotter and tell us when an enemy might be heading our way.

" _Roger that captain. I got your back._ " responded the scout trooper.

Soon the five clones entered the settlement and saw a sight which even made most of them scowl upon seeing the state of the village. Some of the buildings looked be damaged, probably due to the bandits breaking into homes and rounding up the inhabitants. This was probably due to them wanting some sort of ransom and after having been in battle with the Republic only made them go made as a result.

' _I didn't think people were capable of such barbarity!_ ' thought Iron.

One which was shared by many of the clones. Passing through the village, they made sure to stick to the shadows and listen to Fox when he warned them of enemy soldiers getting to close to them. Though the sniper took out a few of them out, seeing the horror which Iron was seeing through his scope.

A sight unlike most the clones have seen in... a long time, maybe even never for most of them.

Bodies of men, women, and children were everywhere. From men being hanged from ropes to women being found naked in alleyways with expressions of horror, pain, and sorrow etched on their faces and the clones realizing these women were raped, regardless of their age.

It made some of the younger clone troopers nearly throw up, while men like Stonewall and Iron could only mask their expressions.

However...

There was one thing all the clones knew, whoever did this was going to pay.

Continuing to travel through the ruins of the town, captain Iron and his team of men were looking through some of the larger buildings. All of them hoping to find survivors from the attack until they heard a beep on their communicators.

" _Captain! This is Hotshot! We know where the rest of the civilians are._ " said Hotshot.

"What's your position soldier?" asked Iron, wondering where the hell these bandits could've placed them.

There was static for a few moments until Hotshot responded, " _The building with the large cross on the top, that's where these bandits are keeping them. Though after seeing what these men have been doing in the town, I doubted there would be any of them left._ "

Even the captain shared a similar thought, one which many wouldn't blame him to have.

"Alright Hotshot, I need you to remain where you are. My team will meet you there," said Iron, "But I need Fox to watch over the building that Hotshot was talking about and keep an eye on the area, we're going to need to make sure that no one else dies today."

The clones nodded.

" _Yes sir._ " responded Fox, following his commander's orders.

Soon Hotshot's response came in, " _Don't worry captain... we'll get the job done, we are soldiers after all._ "

The clones soon started making their way to the large building with cross, same as Hotshot described to them. After traveling along the small alleyways and spaces in between the dilapidated homes, they soon spotted the large cross on top.

' _Bingo._ '

Captain Iron and his team made sure to be careful, they didn't want to get too far ahead of themselves. If they didn't pay attention then there would be consequences. Leaning around the corner, Iron briefly looked around, wanting to find Hotshot and his team.

" _Captain? You there?_ "

Iron leaned back against the wall, "Yeah, what's your position Hotshot?"

He didn't get an answer for a few moments, " _We're in the building on your left._ "

Listening to what his soldier said, Iron looked in the general direction of his left and saw a familiar helmet in the window. Realizing that Hotshot and his team must have been using the homes which were once the villager's

"Hotshot, what do you see?"

He soon saw the clone soldier leaning out and spotting out the area. From what the few moments Iron got to see, there were a few bandits sitting in front of the building with a fire in front of them, mostly likely talking amongst themselves.

Seeing the damage they've done to both the people, these men were probably talking about it as if it were glorious.

" _Alright, from what I was able to see, there's an archer standing in tower above and is overlooking the open area in front of the building._ " Hotshot described, " _Besides that, there are about eleven bandits sitting out front with their weapons close-by. But I can't see anything that's happening inside the building, it looks like they covered the walls with something so that no one could see inside._ "

"Fox, you get that?"

The scout's voice was soon heard, " _Yeah, I heard you loud and clear Hotshot._ "

Realizing he needed to come up with a plan, Iron went through all the information he was told by Hotshot. With a decent number of bandits sitting outside the building and with one overlooking the area, the plan needed to be quick and quiet.

It was imperative they rescued those villagers and keep any harm from coming their way.

He soon came up with a plan, one which needed to be performed with little to no mistakes possible. The plan was simple really, he was going to have Fox take out the archer at the top of the tower to take away the enemy's eyes and allow for the clones to make their way to the building with less chances of being spotted.

Afterwards, he would have his men deal with bandits without using their blasters. Using their weapons would cause too much noise and draw unneeded attention to them, something captain Iron didn't want.

Once they cleared the perimeter, the clones would stack up at the door and breach the building from all possible entrances.

Well...

That was the plan anyway...

Once he explained what he wanted to do, the clones understood and got into position as they were going to have to do this with percision. Soon the clones started moving into their positions as Iron was about to signal to Fox to take out the archer at the top.

Within minutes, he saw the clones hiding in the buildings surrounding the location of the hostage.

"Fox, take the shot." ordered captain Iron.

Not a moment passed as the clone's sniper rifle went off and the archer standing at the top of the building soon crumpled to the floor as he was confirmed dead by Fox. With this in mind, the clones started moving towards the building as they were going to the stun element of their blasters.

"On my signal, we put these guys to sleep." said Iron.

Many of the clones prepped their blasters to only stun these bandits, and since these blasters were quiet on this feature then it would be best to go with it. A moment passed as dark clouds started to block the moon light, making this perfect for the clones.

Realizing their chance, the captain soon gave the order for the clones to neutralize the enemies outside the building.

"Alright boys, take 'em out." ordered Iron.

Soon the clones used the darkness around the enemy and fired off their blasters, all of them using the stun setting. Once they saw the enemy troops slump to the ground, the clones moved in as quietly as possible.

Once they reached the doors, it was here the captain got an idea.

"Hotshot, I need you and Stonewall to head to the other side with three other troopers. We're going to attack these bastards from two different sides."

Understanding what he wanted to do, Hotshot and Stonewall took a few other troopers and headed for the other side of the building. They were mostly likely going to use a charge and blow a hole into the wall.

With the situation at hand, there was no time to be careful with the homes and structures of the village. It was a matter of life and death, making the clones pick the lives of these people over the buildings they inhabit.

" _Sir, we're in position._ "

Hearing Hotshot's voice, captain Iron knew that this was the only chance they would have to save these people.

"On my mark, we breach." Iron said.

They stacked up on both sides of the door and prepped a charge to blow down the door. Once everyone was in position, Iron realized how important this moment became in this brand new world and one they couldn't mess up.

"Now!"

Pressing a button on his wrist, the explosives went off and blew down the door, clean off it's hinges.

Time seemed to slow down as the clones entered the building and began to fire on the stunned bandits, who were trying to figure out what was going on. Hotshot and his team also started firing their weapons and stunned the enemy troops.

Once they were sure the enemy troops in the building were clear, they allowed the villagers to breath a sigh of relief with the knowledge they were going to live to see another day.

As everyone was being escorted out of the building, the village chief approached Iron as he was talking to the pilot of the AT-TE and told some of the clones to retrieve the walkers. They were going to have to come out in the open about who they really were.

" _We thank you captain, for saving us from those bandits._ " said the older man.

" _It's no problem, we just couldn't leave you or village to be killed like that,_ " said captain Iron, " _However we're... not exactly who you think we are._ "

It made all the villagers look at the clones with curiosity. Something told captain Iron and the clones that their night was going to be a long one, especially with the questions that people might have for them.

 **~o0o~**

 **Koda Village**

 **Few Minutes Later**

As the clones helped the civilians, from healing the wounded to helping them bury the dead bodies.

Captain Iron walked around the village with chief, who was trying to digest the information the clone trooper told him. His expressions were amusing, to say the least. Though after explaining to the man about who they were and what they came here to do, the man didn't say anything for a few moments.

" _So... this world of yours, what's it like?_ " asked the elder.

The clone tilted his head a bit as he looked back at him, " _The only thing I can tell you is that it's not a peaceful one. Where we come from, we've been fighting a war against an enemy across different worlds among the stars._ "

Hearing such words made the elder look up towards the night sky.

" _You truly mean the stars, like the ones we see in the night sky?_ "

Iron nodded, knowing to hear such a claim is difficult for these people to understand. Hell, to hear people from a completely different universe is something difficult for anyone to understand, not even the clones themselves.

" _Yes, we've seen different worlds unlike anything you'll ever see._ " answered captain Iron.

Soon another thought came to the commander, one which was the reason why they came back.

" _Sir, we were wondering if you were willing to take in someone we found?_ " the clone commander asked.

The elder looked a bit confused until the captain told them about the forest they visited and the young woman they found inside a well. However, the clone also made sure to mention the creature which burned down the forest.

With the chief explaining that it was called a 'Dragon', a being who was a being many within this world fear and one who almost certainly kills it's prey with ease as nothing is a match for it. Hearing that only made the clone trooper chuckle to himself.

However...

It was also made clear that the village needed to evacuate if there was any chance for them to survive against the beast and staying on the move was the best chance they have. Knowing more about this world, captain Iron said he would help with the evacuation.

Though the man made it clear they could not take care of the Elf, as they called her.

Once they neared the area where the clones were treating the wounded, the villagers soon heard heavy footsteps and soon witnessed something they've never seen before.

Many of them looked frightful until they saw another one of the soldiers come out from inside of it, making them realize that this was a device they used in war. To most of them, it looked like a massive armored beast with six legs to them.

" _What is this... creature?_ " asked the chief, who was just as shocked as the others.

Captain Iron smirked, " _In our military, this is called a tank._ "

 **~o0o~**

 **Utapau, Outer Rim**

 **Few Days Later**

In the cold void of space, a small spacecraft could be seen heading towards a planet. One which was carrying a very important individual for the Confederacy, and one they could not afford to lose after what had happened to Count Dooku.

General Grievous saw the planet of Utapau becoming larger and larger as they approached the planet's surface.

After seeing what the Sith had to show him, the general felt there was still some hope for the war to be won by the CIS if their plan went as intended. He knew how limited their forces were and with the Republic crippling their factories and bases are only making it worse...

Desperate times call for desperate measures...

A thought the general was forced to come to when he was showed something he never expected to find anywhere else in the galaxy.

' _That gate better be worth the sacrifice I'm making here._ ' thought Grievous.

Soon he looked out and saw the shuttle was entering the massive hole, one where a large portion of the droid army was currently positioned for the time. However, after the force he gave the Sith to use in the attempt to invade the Republic from the other side, it was pivotal.

Once the ship started lowering itself into the hole, it was now possible to see a massive fortress hanging on the side, one which was the command center for the operations of the droid army on the planet.

"Land us on platform 2-B, now." ordered the general.

Obeying to the command, the droid pilot started heading for the nearby platform, one where numerous droids and people were currently waiting.

As the shuttle began it's landing sequence, general Grievous stood up and pressed a button on the terminal and the rear of the shuttle opened, making a small metal plank fold out and allow for the general to walk off the transport.

Once he touched the ground, a droid approached him. It was the tactical droids which were assigned to take care of operations for the Confederacy and this was just one of the missions for it. The two walked as the droid started explaining the status of the planet.

"General, we have secured the planet for your arrival and the planet's population is under control." explained the droid.

The general was surprised, seeing as how these droids typically failed the Confederacy on a continuous basis, "Good. Where is the Separatist council at the moment?" asked Grievous.

"They are currently in the conference hall at the moment, waiting for your arrival sir." the droid answered.

It was here the general remembered he needed to contact someone very important, one who the Separatist have been listening to since the start of this war against the Republic and someone who even Count Dooku never disobeyed.

Once the two entered an elevator, they waited for a moments until it came to a stop.

There was a small hallway with a room at the end of it, where two Magma guard were currently standing. Grievous could not take pride in the work he's done with these wonderful machines, ones built to take on Jedi knights and win, though with his declining health and having a bounty on his head, only made things worse.

Entering the small room, the general started pressing a few buttons on the table.

Soon he bows as an image of someone appears in holographic form, one who is wearing a black cloak that's covering their face.

"Lord Sidious." Grievous said, being careful to be as respectful as possible. He knew the two Sith in Count Dooku and Shoijion followed Lord Sidious, both even stating they would never betray their master due to fear as well as respect.

Something the general needed to show.

" _General Grievous, I suggest you move the Separatist leaders to Mustafar._ " suggested Lord Sidious

The Separatist leader had no problem with such a suggestion, "It will be done, My Lord."

It was here the Sith Lord mentioned something which caught the general's attention, " _The end of the war is near, General, and I promise you, victory is assured._ " Lord Sidious said, making the general curious.

Hearing such a declaration was hard to believe for Grievous, from the numerous losses they've taken and the amount of instability which was about to take place in the Confederacy with the death of Count Dooku, it was only going to make things worse than they already are.

"But the loss of Count Dooku?" Grievous asked, wondering what meaning was behind such a statement.

The Sith Lord could only be seen smiling, one filled with both joy and malice at seeing the war come to an end, like there was something coming which even the general couldn't see. In the Separatist faction, they all knew Sidious was a man they should never cross, he was someone who could kill them all if he wanted with his abilities.

Though with people like Dooku and Shoijion around, the Sith Lord had them do his dirty work.

" _His death was a necessary loss, which will ensure our victory. Soon I will have a new apprentice... one far younger and more powerful than Lord Tyranus._ "

 **~o0o~**

 **Location: Unknown**

 **Time: Unknown**

 _Anakin couldn't see what lay in front of him well, it was a distorted of someone crying out in pain._

 _He couldn't see anything, but there was something familiar about the voice and the person crying out for help. It took a moment for him to see who it was and once he realized who it was, that was when Anakin felt fear..._

 _A feeling he hasn't felt in quite some time..._

 _Ever since the death of his mother, the emotion has embedded itself deep within the subconscious of Anakin, making him shutter at the thought of losing those close to him. Especially after seeing images of things he wished he never did._

 _From seeing Padme being choked by someone using the force to Obi-Wan calling out to someone and fighting them._

 _These images terrified the Jedi knight, but none could come close to what he was witnessing right now, one where Padme was lying on a medical bed, one where droids were attempting to do something and it was here he realized she was giving birth._

 _Soon the moment turned for the worse when he could hear her voice, calling out to him._

 _"Anakin, help me! Help, Anakin! Anakin, I love you. I love you."_

 _Her screams echoed through his mind, making him fall to his knees in pain from just the thought of losing Padme. It was too much for him to bear, and within a few moments, the screaming died out._

 _Looking around, he soon saw a sight that will forever be in his nightmares from here on out..._

 _Padme lying on the medical bed, dead and lifeless..._

 _"No! This can't be true! She can't be dead..."_

 _He wanted this nightmare to end and for him to return to a world where his wife was next to him, safe and sound from anything dangerous._

 ** _..._**

 **Coruscant, Republic Capital**

 **Present Day**

Waking up, Anakin was covered in sweat as he realized his nightmare was just that, a nightmare. He looked to his side and saw that Padme was lying there, perfectly safe and sound. It was a relief to him that she was alright.

Swing his legs over the side of the bed and onto the floor, he held his face in hands and weeped silently, trying to get over what he had just saw. Why did he have to see something like that? Was it his fate to lose everyone he cares for?

A few moments pass and Anakin regains his composure.

Deciding he needed some air, Anakin got up from the bed and grabbed a robe as he walked out of the room.

Just as he started walking down the stairs, Padme slowly awoke to see her husband wasn't in bed with her. Fearing what may have happened, Padme got out of bed and started looking for Anakin. Ever since she got back from the other side of the gate, Anakin had been more protective of her.

While she appreciated it, Padme could defend herself just fine, though in her state, maybe she needed to realize that there was a chance something could happen.

After she got sent back through the gate, the young woman realized that there was no way she was going to be able to return. With the fact that she was a few weeks away from giving birth, it was only a matter of time until she needs to step away from the danger of the galaxy.

That very thought helped create a new one...

What was two of them going to do about the birth of their child, with her cousin Raiden being the only who knew about her and Anakin's relationship, it was only a matter of time until the council figured it out.

Forcing Anakin to leave the order would break her heart...

If it wasn't for Obi-Wan and Jin Qui-Gon, then Anakin would've never been made a Jedi knight.

As she continued to search their home, wanting to see if her husband was alright. She heard bits an pieces of him most likely having a nightmare, something he's had for quite sometime since the death of his mother.

Once she passed by the balcony, she saw him overlooking Coruscant as it was still rebuilding from the invasion attempt by the Confederacy a few weeks ago. It was a dangerous time for the Republic as there was a chance their chancellor might have been taken, forcing them to negotiate.

And with it most likely ending the war...

She soon approached her husband, who was looking distraught. Grabbing his hand, she wanted to know what was bothering him. Anakin didn't seem to look at her, only confirming the fears Padme had about something being wrong.

"What's bothering you?" asked Padme, wanting to help her husband the best she could.

Anakin shook his head as he looked at her, "It's nothing Padme, I don't want you to worry over nothing." he said.

It was here the Jedi knight saw something dangling from her neck, it was a necklace and one he remembered giving to her when they first met on Tatooine, " I remember when I gave this to you back when we first met as kids."

Meanwhile, Padme didn't look pleased with him attempting to change the conversation, "Anakin, how long is it going to take for us to be honest with each other?"

The Jedi knight sighed, "It was a dream."

Curious, Padme wanted to know if this was anything similar to the ones he used to have about his mother before she died at the hands of the sand people, though it was one which proved to be correct.

"Bad?" asked Padme.

The Jedi looked rather uncomfortable about the topic but remembered about them being honest with one another, "Like the ones I used to have about my mother just before she died a few years ago. That kind of bad."

However...

Padme felt there was something more to his nightmare. After his mother died, his nightmares usually ended, but this was strange if they were returning. There must be something more to it than what he was leading on.

"And?" she asked.

His answer surprised her, though not as much as she thought it would.

"The dream was about you Padme. The nightmare was about you." revealed Anakin, his fear of losing his wife was something he couldn't take. With his mother dying in his arms, losing someone else was going to make him go mad.

"Tell me, please." pleaded Padme, wanting to do everything in her power to help Anakin through this event.

"It was only a dream, my love."

Anakin wanted to avoid this topic, it was far too painful for him as his mother's death was still fresh in his mind. Seeing her die in his arms caused him an extreme amount of pain and in his rage, he killed the sand people.

That single event changed his life and his emotions were spiraling out of control.

Just as he was thinking about his past tragedies, Padme gave him a look filled with worry. Meeting Anakin changed her life and seeing how he's changed from a little boy to a powerful member of the Jedi order.

Even if he was supposed Chosen One, he was still a living being who had problems like the rest of us.

Then Anakin revealed another fact about his nightmare, "You die in childbirth."

Padme didn't say anything for a moments until she asked what about what happens to their child, "And... what about our child? Do they live or die?"

Her husband shook his head at the question. Anakin couldn't see anything that happens with the child, his emotions at that very moment were going through the roof and his mind was going a hundred miles an hour. He only focused on Padme...

"I don't know..." muttered Anakin.

Standing up, the Jedi knight wrapped his arms around her lithe frame, wanting to do everything in his power to make sure she lives. He needed to do everything possible to avoid that from happening, but with the Jedi council it would be impossible.

He muttered his thoughts to her, "I won't let this one become real, Padme. I can't stand the thought of losing you like I did with my mother."

As they parted, Padme placed her hand on his cheek as she spoke what was on her mind, "Anakin, this baby will change our lives. I doubt the Queen will continue to allow me to serve in the Senate, and if the Council discovers you are the father, you will be expelled from the Jedi Order."

Anakin understood her concern, "I know."

Then Padme said something which made Anakin upset, "Anakin, do you think Obi-Wan might be able to help us? My cousin Raiden may know about us but, I don't want us to be the reason why he gets thrown out of the Order, it's all he has."

Once hearing her cousin's name, it made Anakin realized that their secret was going to bring more trouble than anything else...

He was good friends with Raiden and after performing on numerous missions with them, it was nice to have someone in the Order who understood what it felt like to have nothing more than the Jedi Order, but both him and Raiden came from different backgrounds.

The man came from Mandalore, a world which was based on honor, while Anakin was from Tatooine, a world where the worst the galaxy had to offer lived, while he was a formidable warrior like Anakin.

Risking the only thing he was something Anakin couldn't do to his friend, while he had Padme. Raiden didn't have much besides the war against the Confederacy and the only thing that gave him purpose to his life.

"I know..." Anakin said after being silent for a few moments.

"Anakin, do you think Obi-Wan might be able to help us?" asked Padme.

Soon his emotions came out, one that of anger, "Have you told him anything?" he asked, suspicious that Padme may have told him about their marriage as well as the child they were planning on having together.

His wife soon gave her reason for going to him, "No, but he's your mentor, your best friend... he must suspect something."

"He's been like a father to me, but he's still on the council. Don't tell him anything!" Anakin said, he knew Obi-Wan wasn't going to be available because of both him and Raiden currently on other side of the gate, dealing with whatever issues it is that's been happening.

Padme sighed, "I won't, Anakin."

The young Jedi knight placed his hand on her cheek, "I don't need his help... our baby is a blessing, not a problem." he assured his wife. Nothing could change what this child of theirs would bring them.

And he was going to make sure of that...

 _ **NEXT ONE GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 9: Meeting the Reaper**_

* * *

 **Yippee!**

 **Now we have finally introduced the Star Wars: Episode 3 storyline as well as getting the clones to take on a dragon!**

 **This story is becoming more and more enjoyable to write as you'll guys will see a bit more of the canon stuff before I introduce some new things into the story and it will take a turn for the worse on the Republic's side.**

 **Also... if you watch the NFL, I hope you Packer fans get rocked by the Falcons XD**

 **So yeah, I'll see ya guys next time!**


	9. Chapter 9

" _ **The first and simplest emotion which we discover in the human mind, is curiosity.**_ " - Edmund Burke

* * *

 ** _Rescue Successful!_**

 _After captain Iron and his men liberated the village of the bandits who attempted to take it over. With the villagers now aware of the intentions of the Republic and their actions within this world of theirs, they have began evacuating them after telling the chief of the dragon._

 _Now the clone troopers have started to help with the exodus from the area, guarding them from any and all threats which may come to harm them._

 _While Jedi knights Raiden Dakkar and Obi-Wan Kenobi were watching over the situation happening back on Coruscant and the growing feeling within the force, something which has been a cause of concern for them..._

 _The galaxy is becoming a much more dangerous place..._

 **~o0o~**

 **Coda Village, Empire's Territory**

 **The Next Day**

Within hours of the clones arriving, the people of Koda village were in full gear for leaving the area, informing the residence of a home deep within a forest.

One which contained two individuals, one being a young mage-in-training while the other was an experience mage on the twilight years of his life. Local mages who helped the village from time to time.

The sun began to rise over the horizon as the light began to penetrate through the thick forest canopy, lighting up the forest and everything that was inside. Within the small patch of forest was a small home, one which seemed to lay comfortably within the forest.

While the home was small, it looked rather beat-up as vines seem to crawl along the side of the home. The windows seemed to be in better condition as they let in the natural light of the sun into the home. It was a nice and quiet place for such a home, one which excluded comfort and warmth.

Meanwhile, a wagon was currently being loaded with things from books to clothes and everything else in between.

The wagon looked to be straining underneath the weight of all the things which were being packed. In front of the wagon was a donkey, a creature used for hauling heavy cargo, was grazing at the moment, not paying attention to anything else in the world.

Approaching the wagon was someone carrying a few too many books, the person carrying it was a young girl in her teenage years with light blue hair and was wearing robes for a mage in training such as herself.

"Master, we can't keep piling things onto the wagon." she said, concerned they were putting far too many for the donkey to pull.

At this rate, they couldn't cram anything else into the wagon, it was simply going to be problematic for them when they needed to leave alongside the other villagers. She calmly related this fact to her master, a man far older as well as wiser than her.

"Lelei! Can't you do something about it! I don't wanna leave these things behind!" cried out her master.

Poking his head around the corner was a man wearing far more decorative clothing, along with the white beard showing his age. While his expression told the girl - now named Lelei - about how tired he was at the moment, to all of sudden move decades worth of collecting was something he didn't want to do.

However...

He soon realized what she was going to do. And the master didn't like where she was going once she approached the wagon. Then she started looking through some of the supplies they had and spoke up.

"It would make more sense to leave the Coam fruits and the Lochte pears behind."

The girl called Lelei removed the sacks full of ripe fruits from the wagon one after the other. She placed the book bundle she was holding into the space that was freed up. Coam fruits and Lochte Pears were herbal medicines that were very effective against high fevers. However, these fevers were rare, and so they were not particularly necessary in the short term.

And while they were rare, they were not unobtainable by any stretch, so the precious books she had just loaded up took priority over them.

The old man's shoulder sagged, he honestly didn't feel like moving all of sudden. After living in this home for most of his life, and now to all of sudden leave it after the village was warned about a dragon attack. With the old man hearing about an elf village nearby was destroyed with only one of them surviving the attack, a girl from what he heard.

Making him think about the creature he's seen once in his life.

"The Fire Dragon was not supposed to awaken for possibly another fifty years at the least, why now?" the mage asked himself.

His eyes soon looked towards the road that lead out of their forest and onto one which was filling up with carts and wagons of the villagers of Koda village. Realizing how terrified these people were, the made didn't blame them.

Such a creature like the Fire Dragon was one which terrified most people of this world, and while many have attempted to kill the few, but powerful beast which roam this world, however with little success as they usually were found dead.

It was natural to run when people couldn't fight back...

That was how things worked in this world of theirs, and something they couldn't change.

The old man grumbled and carried the sacks which Lelei had taken off the wagon back into the small house. There was a secret door under his bed where he planned on hiding them. In the meantime, Lelei guided the donkey over and hitched it to the wagon.

"Master, you'd best mount up quickly."

"Ah? What are you saying? I'm not interested in mounting a little girl like big sister would be much better... Oh yes, your big and bouncy sister..."

Lelei glared at the old man with the coldest look she could muster. Then she proceeded to solidify the air into a lump and launched it at him. The solidified air was still only about as hard as a rubber ball, but it still hurt when it hit someone.

"Hey! Stop it! Magic is not a toy! Magic is not to be used for personal gain or enjoyment... Hey!"

"Although there's still some time, we can't play around like this. Let's move out soon."

"I got it, I got it, no need to rush... you really can't take a joke, can you?"

The old man gripped his staff in one hand and settled into the seat next to Lelei. Lelei, on the other hand, glared at the old man and spoke.

"Jokes are meant for entertainment between friends, parents, lovers and other closely related people. However, once they start taking on a sexual nature, one must start taking the other party into consideration as well. For instance, it would be completely unacceptable to start making lewd jokes around a teenage girl. This might well irreparably damage the relationship with them. I believe this should be common knowledge for mature individuals, no?"

The old man sighed deeply as his disciple lectured him.

"Huu... I'm so tired. I wish I didn't have to get old."

"Objectively speaking, that is incorrect. I feel that Master is as hardy as a cockroach."

"Now that's what I call rude. Is that how a disciple should be speaking?"

"This is how I was raised from childhood, and I was raised by my Master."

After her unreserved words, Lelei lightly struck the donkey with her riding crop. The donkey obediently tried to move forward, but it could not, because the wagon's bed was overloaded.

"...Like I said, we're carrying too much."

"That was expected. Also, you were the one who said we could keep piling things on, Master."

Lelei quietly jumped off the wagon. She felt that it would be better to keep walking than sit still on an immobilized vehicle.

"Oi, oi! Lelei, you need to be more patient! If you're like that, nobody will want to marry you, and that would be a shame!"

As the old man said that, he took up the goad and struck the donkey. The donkey tried its best, but as expected, the wagon refused to budge. Lelei noticed that one of the wheels was embedded into the ground, about a third of the way in. If it was stuck like that, it was only natural that the wagon could not move.

"Master, I think you need to get off the wagon."

"Don't, don't worry. After all, don't we have this?"

The old man raised his staff, and Lelei sighed. Mimicking the tone of her master, she replied:

"Magic is not a toy. Magic is not to be used for personal gain or enjoyment..."

Sweat poured like a waterfall from the old man's forehead, and he rushed to answer her.

"We are magicians, we do not walk like the rest of humanity."

However, he could not defy Lelei's glare, which was utterly devoid of warmth or compassion. The old man's mouth opened up as if he were going ah~", and he began chanting the words he had not spoken for a long time.

"..."

His solemnity as an educator clashed with the other feelings in his heart. It would seem the old man's next move would take some time. After a while, he looked at Lelei with an uncomfortable expression on his face.

"I-I'm sorry."

"That's fine. After all, I know that's how Master is."

Lelei was a child who did not sugarcoat her words. After using magic to lighten the weight of the luggage, the donkey could easily pull the wagon and its mountain of cargo. And so, Lelei and her Master sat on the wagon and left the home they had occupied for many years.

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 9: Meeting the Reaper**

As Lelei and her master rode into the center of the village, they were soon disturbed by the sight they witnessed. It didn't take them long to find out about the bandits who attacked the village, leaving behind a path of atrocities in their wake.

Hearing stories about women being found dead in alleyways, clearly showing signs of being raped, to men being found hung from nearby buildings, it was all to much to handle for many of the villagers to handle. Soon Lelei heard stories about the men who rescued those who lived here.

About how they wielded weapons which could burn through any armor a soldier wore to even their own armor being able to stop a sword to an steel tipped arrow from penetrating.

However, those were merely stories, and ones Lelei and her master were skeptical about.

Looking at the scene in front of them were an innumerable amount of wagons to carts, all of them carrying everything that they could carry as they began to flee from their homes, some even took haywains and plow harnesses, and some people had even loaded up their horses with saddlebags.

Lelei looked at the scene, forming thoughts about what she was witnessing.

Soon her master spoke up, "You're an intelligent child, these people must look foolish in your eyes, correct?"

The girl took a moment to find the words she was looking for, "These humans are naturally afraid of the Fire Dragon, something all of us feel. It's only natural that they try to escape while they value their own lives."

"You said it was natural for humans... does that mean they're foolish, then?"

Her master's question made her think long and hard about what was currently going on at the moment.

If they really valued their own lives, they would immediately drop everything and run as far as they could. Stopping to take on and secure luggage would only waste time that could be spent on fleeing, and the luggage itself would slow them down. It would be too late to abandon it when the Flame Dragon came.

To begin with, why did humans even struggle so hard to survive? Death was inevitable - it would happen sooner or later. What was the point in slightly prolonging one's life?

Lelei logically dissected the topic as she considered it, and the old man was agonizing over how to speak with her.

Just as they reached the center of the village, they saw there was a large column of wagons that weren't moving. Curious as to what was going on, the older mage spoke out what he and Lelei were thinking.

"What is going on up ahead?" he asked out loud.

The column of wagons did not move, but Lelei's master received a reply from someone in front.

"Ah, it's Kato. And Lelei too. Ah, we're in trouble now. Someone overloaded their wagon and the axle broke, and now it's stuck in the middle of the road and blocking everyone. We're all pitching in, but it'll be a while." the man said.

They would be bogged down by the wagons behind them even if they wanted to turn around and take another route.

With how limited they are on time, they needed to move that wagon out of the way quickly and get the column of wagons on the move again if they were to survive the Fire Dragon's attack if they were found by the creature.

As her master was talking to the villager, Lelei's attention was drawn by a group of mysterious men with white and gray armor, who her surprise, was able to speak their language with ease even if they didn't look like they were from around here.

She wondered how they learned how to speak their language quickly.

It also sparked a sense of curiosity in Lelei as these men were carrying rods of metal and their armor looked unlike anything that has ever been seen in their world before. This along with the tall metal creatures near the front of the column made her curious as to who these men were

' _How strange, these men are unlike anything I've seen._ '

The young mage's thoughts were solely about these soldiers.

She soon heard a voice full of authority, "Alright, we got a broken down vehicle blocking the road! Boomer, I need you to use the AT-TE to start moving the broken down vehicle out of the way so we can get the line moving again," the man said, while pressing something on his wrist, "Hotshot, Stonewall, and Fox, I need you guys to start telling people to get ready to start moving again."

At a glance, these men were all dressed in the gray and white armor with helmets to cover their face. Not only that but, the strange metal creatures only added more to the mystery about who they are.

With their helmets covering their face and built up frame made it look to be of male gender as their voices were masculine, helping confirm her theory about who they are. It would seem that they belonged to a unknown faction of people that Lelei did not know of.

Although she wasn't quite sure what they were saying, the mysterious soldiers leaped into action under the orders of a man that seemed to be the commander of them with the shoulder pad he was wearing on his right shoulder.

From the look of things, he seemed to be their commanding officer of this unit. They felt like some sort of military organization, the kind that contained their violence with rules and regulations over what the Empire had always done.

She told her master that she was going to 'check things out', and got off the wagon.

The wagon that was the cause of this incident was roughly fifteen wagons ahead.

One of its axles was snapped, and the wagon lay sprawled across the road. She could see scattered luggage, a fallen man, as well as a mother with her child. The horse was collapsed on the road, its mouth dripping with foam. It flailed its limbs as it struggled to get up, so the villagers who wanted to help it stand up were unable to approach.

" _Hey you! It's dangerous over there, you need to get back._ "

It was one of the men in the gray and white armor.

His words were clear to her and knew that the situation happening up ahead was far too dangerous in their mind for someone her age to be near.

However, Lelei realized the fallen mother and child were injured. She brushed aside the man and continued on, ignoring the flailing horse beside her.

"Still alive."

The boy was a little younger than Lelei, about ten years old. After giving her a quick once-over, she found that he had struck his head, and his face and limbs were gradually turning pale. His sweat was flowing like a squeezed rag, and his body was rapidly cooling.

The mother was unconscious, but her condition was stable. The child was the one in danger.

"Lelei! What are you doing? What happened?"

She turned back and saw that the village chief was shouting at her. Beside him was another man in similarly painted armor. He must have gone to inform the chief about this.

" _Chief, I think the cause was overloading of the wagon and rot in the axle. The child is in great danger but his parents should be fine. The horse is beyond help._ "

Soon the elder looked towards the young mage, "Is Kato nearby?" asked the chief.

"He's worrying his head off in the wagons behind. He let me come here to take a look." answered Lelei.

As she spoke, another soldier with the same armor, except for a small white cross on his shoulder, began performing his job of helping the child Lelei had looked at. His technique suggested that he had been medically trained. The man with only two small metal rods in his hand stood beside the chief, and began signalling to his team.

Suddenly a cry rang out.

" _Danger!_ "

The sound of something flying through the air followed shortly, and when Lelei looked back, the thrashing horse lay motionless on the ground. It had missed her by a hair's breadth, but if it had come any closer, the full weight of the horse - ten times that of a man - would have fallen on top of Lelei.

All Lelei knew was that the men in the strange armor had done something to the frenzied horse, and that it had saved her.

 **~o0o~**

 **Later that Night**

 **Badlands, Empire's Territory**

The allied armies, gathered under the Empire's banner, vanished in the span of one night.

If such a thing happened on the other side of the gate, the Republic would do everything in it's power to find them and many across Coruscant would see news reports talking about such a thing. But in this world, to the residents of the Special District, the movements of the army were unknown to them. Even if they lost the war, they would simply exchange one set of rulers for another, and it would not affect their daily lives much.

The reason why this was the case was because this country was contested territory. Sometimes one party would take it, and sometimes another party would conquer it. Since their rulers changed so often, it was impossible for the people to feel any loyalty towards them.

In this world, as long as one's home was not a battlefield, and one's families were not conscripted to fight on the battlefield, the common folk would care nothing about their country.

Even so, the people's lives had been affected in some way due to the events of recently.

The recent rampancy of bandits was the cause.

This world was ruled by soldiers and knights, but none of them acted to suppress banditry. This was because the obligations of nobles and their knights did not extended to maintaining order.

All they cared about was 'control'. In truth, the nobles were no different from the bandits. The former robbed the peasants and called it taxes, while the latter used no such pretense. Both sides refused to accept any form of remonstration and responded to any refusals to pay with brute force.

Even when the nobles or knights rode out to hunt down bandits, they were like shepherds driving off wolves, which meant that they would stop once the bandits vanished from their sight. Frankly speaking, any good they did was merely a side effect..

Since desperate bandits fought harder than normal and might even manage to kill them by luck, nobles and their troops were not too fired up about cornering and finishing off bandits. That opinion was hardly rare. Even on Coruscant, clone troopers weren't always ordered to deal with criminals and sometimes did whatever it was they were ordered to, regardless of the situation currently happening.

That being said, the bandits preferred it when there were fewer nobles and knights around.

Until recently, they had to skulk around in the shadows, but now they could move around freely.

An intelligent hunter would consider that killing all the prey would leave none for the future. Fortunately, or unfortunately, an intelligent person would not have become a bandit, and so most bandits were cruel and ruthless in the extreme.

For instance, there was a family who fled their village as they received news that a dragon had been spotted in the vicinity.

The father drove his wagon with his plowhorse, and on that wagon were all the family's possessions, his 32 year-old wife and his 15 year-old daughter.

The villagers all fled as if they were grazing animals. However, unlike the wild animals of their own world, this family did not move in a group as most do. There was no time for that, not when a dragon could attack at any moment.

So they ignored their villagers' cries for them to stop, and left the village on their own.

On their second night, they ran into a group of bandits.

The man desperately spurred his horse in order to flee, but there was no way for the overburdened wagon and horse to move quickly. With no way to resist, the family was captured by the mounted bandits.

The man was slain instantly, and his wife and daughter were taken away.

In the darkness, over a dozen bandits gathered around a campfire and gleefully rummaged through their spoils.

Their prey had not just been carrying coins and currency, but provisions as well. They filled their bellies with the food they had captured. They even took turns raping the mother and daughter, but the more important bandits had already satiated their bestial lusts and were relaxing with wine.

"Boss! Koda Village is about to make a move!"

Ever since the Flame Dragon appeared, scores of villagers had fled. Laden down with luggage, they could not move fast, nor could they fight back. Why not attack them? There was no reason not to do so. They would slaughter and pillage them.

After hearing his minion speak, the boss laughed in satisfaction. It was a good idea, so they should go ahead and do it. But as he thought about it...

"We don't have enough people."

It would be asking too much of his band of twenty-odd men to take on an entire village at once.

"About that, why don't we get guys from around the area? That way, we can work together to bring in the biggest haul ever."

This was also a good chance to recruit more hands. With enough people, they could successfully attack entire villages, and even towns. If he played his cards right, he cast out by his lord might even aspire to become a lord himself.

From a bandit to a lord. The sweet dream of going from a wretched little thief to the ruler of his own domain filled his mind.

This nameless bandit chief's final moments were spent imagining a time when he would be happiest. Was that a good thing, or a bad thing?

Either way, his head fell from his neck, with blood soon flying into the air.

It rolled across the ground and into the campfire.

The stench of burning hair and scorched flesh instantly filled the campsite.

Biologically speaking, a severed head could retain consciousness for several seconds. That being the case, the chief would have experienced his head falling to the ground. His field of view would have rolled with him, and before he realized what was going on, he would have seen what used to be his body spurting blood .

After that, in his rapidly blackening field of view, he would have seen the black-haired goddess of death bathing in his fresh blood.

The first thing anyone would think when they saw the girl was 'black'.

Her skin was so pale it was nearly transparent, her hair and clothes were black, and her eyes were bottomless pools of obsidian.

The bandit chief's severed head flew with a 'pyun'.

She held a heavy halberd in her hands.

It was a weapon that looked like someone had attached a heavy, slab-like axe blade to a long shaft. It wasn't something a fragile little girl could swing like a matchstick. Nor was it something a girl in black lace should be wielding. That she could use such a weapon with her delicate, slender arms and her thin little fingers, as pale as white jade, was far beyond anyone's ability to imagine.

She rested the halberd over her shoulders, and exhaled loudly. The girl was surrounded by the scattered corpses of the bandits.

"Well, that was fun. You bandits were just wonderful~, thank you for tonight."

She grasped the hem of her skirt and courtesy elegantly.

At a glance, she looked to be around fourteen to even fifteen, and judging by her beauty and refined movements, she seemed to be a very well-bred girl. She had a brilliant smile on her face, but that smile did not reach her eyes. Her black pupils were filled with a hungry darkness, like a fathomless abyss.

"Thank you for offering your lives to me. I thank you on behalf of my god. My god is very pleased with your gift, and he says that I should enjoy myself with you."

"...What! What the hell are you!"

Among the surviving bandits, one of them managed to shout with far more courage than he felt, although his bowels were frozen with fear. He deserved praise for still being able to speak despite the present circumstances.

"Me?"

She smiled adorably.

"I am Rory Mercury. Apostle of Emroy, God of Darkness."

Fear was the only thing the bandits felt when they heard that name. To be associated with Emroy meant that death and destruction followed in her wake. This only made the men want to get away from the demon standing before them.

"I-Is that the formal wear of the priestesses of the Temple of Emroy? One, one of the Twelve Apostles, Rory the Reaper?!"

"Ara~ you knew? Mhmh~ correct."

In the face of the laughing girl, the bandits scattered like leaves. They left everything behind and fled with all their might, driven by their fear of death.

"What, what the hell, how can we fight an Apostle!" one of them shouted.

"Oh, no. No no no no no. You can't run away."

Rory jumped, carrying the heavy slab of metal that seemed to weigh several times more than her. She pursued the fleeing bandits like a ferocious carnivore hunting down its prey. The halberd cleaved through the bandits' heads like she was splitting watermelons at the beach, and the surrounding area was strewn with chunks of flesh.

"Ueh, abbah... aiiiieeeee!"

Rory towered over of the fallen man. She swung her halberd lightly, sweeping it behind her legs before she raised it high above her head.

Her snow-white skin was dyed red by sprays of blood.

"Ufufu... God-sama said so, you know. The goal of all life is death. No Human can escape it."

A pitiful scream rang out just as the halberd swung down.

 **~o0o~**

 **Same Area, Empire's Territory**

 **5 minutes later**

"Haa haa haa why, what is an Apostle of Emroy doing here?!"

The man cursed his misfortune as he ran with all his strength.

A pitiful scream rang out from the distance. Rory the Reaper had claimed another soul.

"Damn, damn it!"

There were no paths in the wilderness at night. The countryside was littered with swamps, rock formations, thorny thickets and trees. The man stumbled occasionally, his body was covered in mud and sweat, and his clothes were torn.

Once more, a howl rang out from in front of him.

He slipped on a patch of mud.

His body slid across the floor, and he bashed his head against the ground.

"Dammit, dammit, dammiiiiiiit, why is my luck so damn bad!"

"Ara~ weren't you having fun?"

There was the sound of footsteps. Upon hearing the clear, bell-like voice, he desperately looked up. The black-clad girl towered over him, backlit by the silver disc of the moon.

"Weren't you having fun just now? Didn't you kill people?"

She planted the pointed tip of her axe between the man's spread legs, a hair away from his groin.

"Aiiieeee! I, I, I've never killed anyone!"

"Ara, really now?"

"It's true! This was the first job I did since I joined! The women too, they said I had to wait till the end since I was the new guy! I didn't even lay a finger on them!"

"Hmmmmmm?"

Rory thought briefly about this before speaking to the man again.

"The other bandits with you have all been called to be with Emroy. Don't you feel lonely by yourself?"

The man shook his head desperately. He was not lonely, not lonely at all.

"However, won't it be sad if you're the only one left out?"

"No, please, I would really like to be left out!" the man begged.

Rory looked at him with a cold gaze that was as sharp as a knife.

"What should I do with you, then~"

As she said that, Rory clapped her hands together.

"I've got it, this should be a good idea. Since you haven't done anything yet, why not start now?"

With that, the black-clad girl grabbed one of the man's legs. He could feel an unimaginable strength that belied her delicate appearance.

"Ru run ra~" she hummed to herself, as she dragged the man like a mop.

"It hurts! Please stop! Gwaahhhh!"

The wilderness here was filled with rocks and sand. They tore the man's clothes to shreds as he was dragged across them, and then rubbed his sweaty skin raw. Soon his body was covered in his own blood.

"Who did you like more between the mother and the daughter?"

"Noooo! Please stop! Gueeehhh "

"Don't stand on ceremony, this is the end for you, anyway. I'll ask nicely so you can do them."

Rory grabbed the man's leg and tossed him. He landed in a ragged heap beside the mother and daughter.  
"Well, go ahead then. It's your turn."

The man frantically shook his head. The legs of the naked women remained spread, a hollow testimony to their violation. Their arms were raised, as though hailing the Emperor. Neither of them were moving.

By the looks of things, they had stopped breathing.

"Ara~ what a bother. The two of them have passed on."

It would seem they had been raped to death.

"So sorry, we didn't make it in time."

Rory closed their unblinking eyes and lowered her head. Then she smiled to the man.

"Still, since they're like this, why not do them anyway?"

Dampness spread through the man's crotch, and a puddle of liquid formed below him.

 **~o0o~**

 **Somewhere in Empire Territory**

 **Few Hours Later**

Captain Iron and his team were currently guarding the column of wagons, carts, and other such modes of transportation the people of Koda Village had available to them on such short notice.

While the AT-TE wasn't the quickest vehicle out there, it was certainly faster than anything the villagers had the moment as it was also carrying some of the children who didn't fit on the wagons. Making it the lead vehicle of the column of refugees trying to survive. The captain's thoughts were filled with what he was going to do since the commander was supposed to check in with the base a few hours ago.

Now they were escorting the villagers to a safe location until they felt the Fire Dragon was no longer after them.

Something the clones didn't know how long it would take to do so. As the heavy footsteps of walkers continued to ring out in the distance, the clones currently using the much faster WT-RT were traveling along the side of the column.

"Stonewall, do you read me?"

The clone commander raised his arm, he waited for a few moments until the radio sparked to life.

" _Yes captain, I hear ya._ " responded the clone trooper.

"Make sure to keep an eye on the scanner, we still have no idea what could be out here."

Stonewall felt the same way too, " _Yes sir._ "

As the clones continued to guard the villagers, they soon found that one of the wagons appeared to have broken down. Captain Iron along with another clone trooper started moving to see what was going on.

Once the commander disembarked off his vehicle, the clone looked to see a man with his wife and child, trying his best to fix the wagon and to keep up with the group. While Iron may never admit, he knew the man was trying to save what he and his family had in their possession, things which have importance to them. However, the clone was used to the feeling of loss as he understood he was a soldier in a war these people wouldn't understand.

About how they needed to realize in a chaotic world, sometimes learning to let go was going to let you survive.

This simple fact was accepted by the clone army.

The chief, who was wondering what was going on, headed to speak with the man.

Seeing the expression on the man's face let Iron and the other clones know that he needed to leave behind what was once theirs, for the sake of their own survival. Irons and the clone trooper realized they needed to move the wagon out of the way and burn it to the ground.

Leaving behind something like this was only going to leave behind a trail, one the clones didn't want.

Using the walkers, the clones moved the broken down wagon out the way and made a fire in order to burn it to the ground. Hearing the sound of sobbing, the clones looked to see the man holding his family while the clones certainly felt something, it wasn't enough to make them pity the family.

It was simply the world these people lived in.

One where danger is present everywhere and this family was one who refused to accept that fact.

Just as they started moving once again, they made some progress from Koda village. After maybe a few hours, the men inside the AT-TE were doing as they were instructed by captain Iron, to keep an eye for anything on their scanners, and such a thing did happen.

Boomer, who was currently in the cockpit, looked to see someone down the dirt road. Curious as to who it was, the clone pressed a button and started talking to his gunner, who was operating the massive barrel which was the tank's main line of defense.

"CT-3248, do you see someone down the road? Please confirm that I'm not crazy." he said.

The clone pilot soon heard a chuckle in response, " _No, you're not. But... should we tell the captain about this?_ "

Seeing as how their superior would need to know about this, the clone soon contacted his commander, "Uh, captain, I think we need you to see something for us."

Meanwhile, captain Iron heard what the clone trooper said and responded, " _What did you see?_ "

Boomer used the advanced optics of the AT-TE and saw something he was quite confused to see. In the distance, there was a girl who looked to be maybe in her early teenage years. Who was wearing a red and black dress, however that wasn't what caught the eye of the troopers manning the tank.

It was the enorumous battle-axe she wielded in her hand.

" _Sir... I think you need to see this._ "

Hearing that response, the captain raised an eyebrow underneath helmet. Figuring his men weren't messing with him, the clone made his way to the AT-TE and was soon seeing an individual who looked strange to him.

The girl appeared to be speaking, almost like she was talking to the tank itself.

" _Where do you come from? Where are you going?_ " she asked, looking directly at the pilot of the AT-TE.

As he got closer, the girl soon took notice of the clone commander and merely smiled at him. However, the commander felt a small shiver run down his spine. Strange to feel such a thing from someone who he's never met.

Just as she was about to speak, the clone's communicator went off.

" _Captain... it appears the kids in here, know who that person is outside._ " Stonewall said, wondering as to how kids knew about this girl wielding a battle-axe.

"Let them off then." ordered Iron.

Soon the back ramp of the AT-TE started lowering itself to ground level, letting the kids off as they rushed towards the girl. Calling her an oracle, letting the clones know that this girl was a religious figure of some sort.

However...

With being in a world where something called the Force existed as well as other strange occurrences, made them believe the idea much more than average person. As the girl seemed to be talking with the villagers, explaining to her about them needing to leave their homes due to the recent attacks of the Fire Dragon.

Then the people explained the recent events concerning the bandit attack on their village.

The clones felt the temperature around the girl drop a few degrees as they realized the kind of anger she was suppressing for the sake of the children present. Afterwards, the people talked about how the clones save them and put the bandits down.

Facing the expressionless helmets of the soldiers who looked odd to her, Rory felt that there was something different about these men. The normal feelings a person would feel about killing another wasn't present in these men...

It was almost like they didn't feel any emotion towards killing...

Like it was second nature to them, but how could that be possible? The god for whom she represented was the god of war, someone who felt the killing nature within every single individual in this world.

So how were these men any different from others?

A question which Rory Mercury was intent on finding an answer...

 ** _NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS_**

 ** _CHAPTER 10: Introductions for All, Part 1_**

* * *

 **Welp, with the introduction to both Lelei and Rory to the world complete, now we're moving onto bigger and better things for this story and I hope you guys are ready!**

 **So yeah, this story will move away from the canon material soon but there are a few more things I need to do in order to make that happen, but I know the wait will be worth it once I finish planning out the other important bits.**

 **Let's hope things go well for the other side with what I'm planning guys!**

 **I'll see ya guys next time!**


	10. Chapter 10

" ** _Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning._** " - _Erwin Rommel_

* * *

 _ **Impending Invasion!**_

 _Since arriving and setting up a base of operations in this new world, the Republic is urging Jedi generals Raiden Dakkar and Obi-Wan Kenobi to begin their offensive aimed towards crippling this so-called 'Empire' and bring them to justice for what they've done._

 _While clone commander Iron and his men had helped a village evacuate after spreading the news of the dreaded Fire Dragon of this world._

 _Now, with the appearance of the mysterious girl who wields a large axe has only made things more strange for the clones as they attempt to do what is right in this world. However, only time will tell if their actions are right..._

 _The time has come for the clones to put their valor to the test!_

 **~o0o~**

 **Star Base, Alnus Hill**

 **Few Hours Later**

Scenes of fire and death played out in the mind of the elf. All she could see was the same event playing over and over again, seeing the people in her village being burned alive by the vicious flames spewing forth from the jaws of the Fire Dragon.

A creature which every living being feared in this world, making even the strongest of heroes look like helpless cattle.

To her, what she felt that day was nothing short of terror. Seeing her father at the top of the well, giving her the last image of him smiling. Then darkness filled her vision not long after falling down the well.

During her time stuck inside the well let her think about what might happen to her.

Thoughts about death creeped inside the girl's mind, it was sad for her to die alone while watching her own father die at the hands of Fire Dragon. Fading from conscious, the girl heard voices and felt her body being picked.

One of the first things she thought was that bandits found her and were going to have their way with her.

Then...

Nothing happened, she heard more voices and realized all of them were males. Soon she felt warmth not long afterward and was wrapped in something she hadn't felt in quite sometime; the feeling of being safe from harm's way.

She wouldn't wake up for quite sometime. Sounds of battle could be heard at that very moment as the elf slowly opened up her eyes and saw a metal ceiling above her. The elf would later find out it was a battle between the Fire Dragon who burned down her village against soldiers wearing white and gray armor.

Looking at their weapons, these bright blue lights of energy came from them and seemed to do some kind of damage to the beast.

It seemed to burn through the scales of the dragon, a weapon like the ones these men used shouldn't exist. There's nothing in their world that they know of that can break through the thick scales of the legendary Fire Dragon.

A beast which no hero has been able to slay over the course of the last few centuries.

Not long after the fight with the dragon, the men in the strange armor helped the villagers bury the dead and all of them merely bowed their heads in respect. Then, one of them spoke with a villager and from what the elf was able to pick up at the time, she saw that some of the villagers who lost their family were going to be left behind.

The elf also noticed a blue haired girl who she found out later on was a mage. Next, it was a girl wearing a red and black dress who also wielded a giant axe, later on finding out it was the figure known as Rory the Reaper.

Feeling somewhat fearful of the girl was natural, who wouldn't be terrified of someone who killed out of the joy they got out of it.

However, the elf found out about how she treated those who were innocent without issue and only killed those who deserved to die. A noble sense of justice which made elf slowly become more comfortable with her while the men in strange armor spoke among themselves about such a thing.

Now...

Tuka was sleeping on the floor of the vehicle the men used, one which had six legs and moved faster than wagons. Inside the AT-TE, captain Iron was currently manning the tank as he watched over the civilians who were inside.

There were roughly ten people who the villagers couldn't afford to take. A few of them were children and an elderly woman, along with the two mages, the blonde elf girl, and the young girl who wielded a dangerous weapon.

Such a strange group of people to be taken in.

However, the captain was now going to have to explain himself to the generals about why he hadn't checked in for quite sometime. Looking at the monitor in front of him, the captain could see the Republic base in the distance.

"Alright boys! We're nearing the base and I want a smooth return back, so stay sharp!"

Giving out the orders, every clone trooper followed them and began preparing themselves. Knowing that he was going to have to wake them up, Iron walked over to some of the people inside and shook them softly.

Even captain Iron realized that these people weren't soldiers, only civilians who were getting caught up in problems that have nothing to do with them.

The first person he woke up was the girl whose name was Rory.

As he placed his hand on her shoulder and started shaking her softly as he could, not wanting to be cleaved in half by what was in her hand.

"Hey, wake up." he whispered in their language.

The girl merely groaned at having to wake up. Her crimson eyes locked onto the black visor of the clone trooper's helmet. A smile graced her features as she saw the familiar shoulder pad, letting her know who it was.

"You know captain?" Rory said, "Waking up a girl from her beauty sleep means there's something important, usually."

Sighing, "Miss Rory, we're almost back at our base. I just wanted to start waking everyone up since we'll be arriving soon." captain Iron explained, seeing the rather unfamiliar emotion within the girl's eyes.

One he couldn't figure out.

Rory on the other hand, felt a little disappointed the captain of the soldiers woke her up for a reason concerning his job. The demigod was hundreds of years old and was nearing the end of her time in this world. There were still things she wanted to experience before moving on from this life to the next.

Such a thing is the emotion which has never sparked within the demigod's heart, one that is called love.

Over the past few centuries, it felt strange for the priestess to see the kind of love that one person felt for another. To see such emotions bloom from within someone's heart and give them the courage to do things they could only wish for.

However...

There was something strange she found about the captain, no scratch that, all of these soldiers for that matter.

All of them seemed to be similar in some kind of way. It was strange how they reacted to one another, not in the way a soldier would react to his fellow brother-in-arms, but in a manner similar to brothers in a way.

Such a thought was one worth keeping for the moment. Now, Rory looked over to the other people on board the strange vehicle. Standing up, the priestess walked over to the young blue haired mage and started the long process of helping the captain wake all of the civilians up.

After nearly five minutes, most of the children on board the AT-TE were now awake and curious as to where they were. Along with the elf girl whose name was Tuka, Rory, and the blue haired mage who went by the name of Lelei.

Most of them seemed a bit anxious since the AT-TE had no visible windows for them to look out.

A feature which was important to keeping the well-armored vehicle from being destroyed. Then the civilians heard strange sounds outside the vehicle they were in, one they never heard of in their lifetime.

Soon they felt the massive transport come to a stop. Wondering what was going on, they were soon told by the men in the strange armor that they were getting off here. As all of them stepped onto the platform, captain Iron was also on the platform with them.

Pressing a small button on the side, the platform started moving downwards. Small rays of light entered the inside of the tank and a few moments passed until all of them saw a sight which made many of the kids have wide eyes.

In front of them was a military base, one which seemed far more advanced than any military in this world.

There were more of the massive vehicle they traveled in, with even more men in similar armor, working on them. Large columns of men passed by them, looking at the new arrivals with their expressionless helmets and merely went back to what they were doing.

Captain Iron stepped off and told everyone that nothing would happen.

Hearing a familiar sound above him, the clone commander saw a gunship headed for their position. Looking behind him, he saw many of the civilians looked a bit nervous seeing the transport. He figured they've never had the technology to travel via air besides the creatures they called dragons.

Landing in front of them, the gunship's doors opened to reveal a clone trooper in armor similar to the captain, except instead of gray it was a yellow-ish color.

Individuals like Lelei and her master looked at the transport in wonder, trying to figure out what kind of magic these men were using in order to make the strange metal vehicle fly through the air. Lelei saw one of the men walking towards them.

" _Can I ask what kind of magic you use in order to make that vehicle fly?_ " the young mage asked.

She received a few of the clones snickering behind her. One of the clones, who she remembered was one who the captain spoke to alot, approached her.

" _Well... that isn't magic. In our world, technology has gotten pretty far and this transport is one we use in many of the military operations we take part in. Though don't forget that everything in this base is intended for war, not exploration._ "

Hearing such an answer was interesting. Seeing the metal rods in the the soldiers hands, to the massive six-legged vehicle they were in, to even this flying metal wagon. All of these things were used for war, and no one in their world possesses anything close to it.

As the people of this world spoke to each other, captain Iron was in the middle of explaining what happened to his superior as well as friend; commander Cody.

"So what happened out there Iron?" asked Cody.

Captain Iron only shook his head and laughed, "Oh you wouldn't believe some of the crazy crap that I just went through these past few hours."

The two soon started walking towards the gunship, but as the transport was about to take off, the captain yelled out in the direction of his men, "Stonewall, you're in charge until I get back. The rest of you are to take care of the civilians until we get things settled."

Nodding, the clones listened to the order of their commander.

Cody soon ordered the pilot to head towards the command center, where both Jedi knights were currently waiting. While the captain was currently remembering the events which lead to them having to take in these people.

Fighting off a giant Fire Dragon wasn't in their job description...

Or, so they thought...

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 10: Introductions for All, Part 1**

 _Heavy footsteps rang out in the distance as the familiar look of the heavy tank of the Republic's clone army; the AT-TE, continued to lead the column of refugees. All of them still feeling anxious with the thought of the Fire Dragon still out there._

 _Meanwhile, captain Iron was currently dealing with an issue that wasn't going to leave him along anytime soon. After picking up the girl whose name was Rory, the girl seemed to have taken interest towards the captain._

 _At the moment, the girl was currently sitting in the clone commander's lap._

 _This was certainly something the soldier had never dealt with. But the captain just went along with it, he didn't want to upset a girl who wields a giant axe and was capable of slaughtering the clone commander._

 _After hours of leading the column, Iron was currently riding on the WT-RT and was next to the AT-TE as they soon entered a rather dangerous area to be in. The terrain changed to where there were high cliff walls above them._

 _While they were inside the gorge, somewhere a soldier didn't want to be in._

 _Especially after the years the clones have spent fighting the droid army and the kind of weapons they possess would make any engagement with them a living hell unlike anything the galaxy had seen in many years._

 _"Captain, you think we're going to run into trouble?" asked Hotshot over the radio._

 _Just as the clone trooper asked the question, captain Iron noticed something strange about the shadows in the area. It seemed like they covered a much wider area than they originally did. Looking up, the captain saw something approaching their position._

 _It seemed small and insignificant until the clone commander used the advanced optics in his helmet._

 _A few moment passed and it became apparent it was a dragon of some sort approaching them. The small creature roared in the direction of the column, however it was cut short as something much, much bigger decided to enter the area._

 _Captain Iron couldn't believe what he saw, "You had to ask, didn't you Hotshot?"_

 _The beast above them was a giant dragon with thick, red scales and golden eyes which locked onto the column of wagons trailing behind them. Something told the clone trooper that things were only going to get worse from this point onward._

 _"Hotshot, you had to open your big mouth."_

 _Many of the clones were seeing the same thing as captain Iron. A giant red dragon soon landed with a massive sound, it perched itself on top of the nearby hill as it soon opened it's mouth and a wave of fire spewed from it's mouth._

 _The creature began to tear apart the wagons, it started attacking the defenseless villagers until a loud noise could be heard in the distance. Less than a second later, the Fire Dragon cried out in pain from it being hit in the side._

 _ ***BOOM***_

 _Many of the refugees looked in the direction of the sound to see the barrel of the AT-TE smoking at the moment._

 _"Gunner! I need you to keep hitting it while we flank it!"_

 _Doing as he was ordered, the AT-TE gunner fired another round into the dragon. The creature's attention was focused on the clone troopers and their vehicles. Deciding to take a risk, captain Iron got Rory to get off and allow him to do his job._

 _Just as she was going to ask what he and his could do, the captain was already facing forward on his walker along with the rest of his men._

 _Using the heavy gun on their walkers, they wanted to keep the attention of the dragon on them, not on the tank. Every time a round from the tank hit the armor, the beast cried out in pain. It was all they could do in reality._

 _As they were doing this, the clones were trying their best to make sure the people could get away from the battle between the clones and the dragon._

 _"What the hell is this thing?" asked Fox._

 _Iron only shook his head, "Just shut the hell up and shoot the damn thing, at least it ain't like the Zillo beast!"_

 _Continuing their assault, the clones riding on the walkers were keeping the creature as busy as they could while the AT-TE continued to put round after round into the creature's body. Proving that against heavy weapons, it's scales will crumble._

 _Back inside the AT-TE, the clones were quickly trying to contact the base for some kind of air support. It wasn't until they saw the elf girl they rescued woke up and started speaking to them in their language._

 _"Ono! Yuniryu! Ono!"_

 _It was here the clones saw the girl pointed towards her eyes and pointed at the dragon on their screen._

 _Stonewall soon got the idea of what the girl was saying._

 _"Gunner! I need you to lock onto it's eyes and hit it here! Now!" ordered Stonewall._

 _Without any hesitation, the clone followed his orders, "Yes sir!"_

 _Continuing on their attack, Iron and the rest of his men made sure to stay one step ahead of the beast because with the limited number of men they have, it was best to be cautious. It was the only thing they could do for now._

 _Soon another round from the tank's heavy cannon struck the beast in the eye, causing it to roar out in pain._

 _Then the beast took off, it soon landed on the ground once more and caused the ground to shake. In doing so, it caused the AT-TE to move and the gunner fired off a round that hit the beast in the arm. Once that happened, the clones saw the creature using it's other arm to nurse the wound it received._

 _However..._

 _They soon noticed an immense amount of blood pouring on the ground and saw a large stump. Realizing that they blew off the arm, the clones saw the creature fly off as a result of the limb it lost in the fight against them._

 _Just before it took off, the dragon's eyes locked onto captain Iron's walker._

 _It seemed to mutter something in it's language. But from what the commander could get out it was that it wasn't happy._

 _Then, it was gone._

 _The beast flew off. Many of the refugees saw the creature fly away and all of them looked relieved to see the Fire Dragon left them. Soon many of the villagers started thanking the clones for what they did._

 _For the first time in quite some time, the clones received gratitude for what they did for these people._

 _Soon the village chief approached the captain, "Captain Iron! We must thank you and your men for protecting us from the Fire Dragon. Your men are the first in centuries to accomplish such a feat in these lands."_

 _Iron shook his head, "We don't tend to care about that stuff. We're only soldiers sir."_

 _"But," he said, "You and your men are heroes, if weren't for you then we would be dead."_

 _The captain didn't want to explain to them that the idea of being heroes didn't really enter the mind of the clones. From a young age they were taught that heroes were a dead profession and being a soldier was the closest thing to such._

 _Or, so they thought..._

 _"We're only doing our jobs, meaning that we here to help."_

 **...**

 **Same Area**

 **Hours Later**

 _Once the battle with Fire Dragon was over, the clones saw that some of the villagers were killed during the course of the battle. A sight of burning bodies, from women to children to men, no one was safe from the beast._

 _Most the villagers were moving the bodies and looked to be burying the dead._

 _Something the clones respected. During the three years which they've been fighting the droid army, they've never been given the opportunity to bury their own dead brothers who had fallen in battle. In war, it was difficult to know that some survived and some didn't._

 _However..._

 _That was war, and war never changes. A fact that the galaxy has accepted for thousands of years._

 _Feeling somewhat responsible the clones soon helped the villagers in the process of burying the dead. It was a slow and painful process for many of them while the Republic troops let them have their moments of weakness._

 _Sadly, it was all the clones could do for them._

 _Once they finished burying the dead, the clones merely stood in line with one another and bowed their heads as a sign of respect. The clone army over the years have interacted with people of different worlds from the Twi'leks of Ryloth to the Gunguns of Naboo, they've learn to accept the culture and value these people place upon the dead._

 _After the small service concluded, the villagers knew that the Fire Dragon was gone, for now. They decided that it was time for them to find relatives and towns nearby who could take them in after this whole ordeal._

 _But, there was a problem._

 _The chief explained to the clones that they couldn't take in the people who lost their families or were already orphans as well as those who are severly injured. It just wasn't possible for the group, already low on supplies, to take care of those who couldn't._

 _Knowing the issues he could face, captain Iron decided that he and his men would take in the refugees and bring them back to the base._

 _Something which was surely going to cause problems with the plan that the generals were coming up with. As the only reason why they were here was because of what the Empire did to the people of the Republic._

 _A revenge mission, in simple terms._

 _The clones merely showing the anger which the Senate and many of Coruscant were currently feeling at this moment. Now, this all of sudden turned into a relief mission to help those who couldn't help themselves._

 _Realizing how short on time they were, captain Iron soon ordered the rest of his men to start boarding their vehicles and telling them to help the refugees on board as they were going to take them back to the base._

 _Some of the clones were confused about this, but weren't opposed to it._

 _These people were victims of circumstance as the Fire Dragon was most likely the result of something happening and now these people thought they were going to be left to survive on their own abilities._

 _With most of them being kids in reality._

 _Something the clones wouldn't stand to see in this harsh world. They were going to do what they can and taking them back to the base was the only thing they could do was blowing their cover and letting the people of this world know who they are._

 _Once they loaded up on the walkers, the clones and the refugees started the long trek back to the base..._

 _Wondering what was going to happen now? A thought many of the soldiers shared, one which was for those who couldn't seem to understand the reasoning and emotion behind such a move. The clones were soldiers, and soldiers follow orders, didn't they?_

 _It was this simple reaction which would stir a thought among them._

 _One which wouldn't stay for long..._

 **~o0o~**

 **Alnus Hill**

 **Present Day**

"That's what happened with the Fire Dragon, sir."

Captain Iron was currently standing in front of both Jedi generals. Ever since he returned from the recon mission, the captain was currently telling the generals about the recent events which occurred while he was out there with his men. Resulting in them fighting off the massive Fire Dragon, a creature so dangerous that many ancient warriors of this land have died, all of them trying to kill it.

"General, may I say something?" asked the clone commander, currently holding his helmet on the side.

Raiden nodded, seeing no problem with his clone commander saying something, "You have permission to speak."

"The orders to bring in the refugees were mine, assisting the villagers to escape the Fire Dragon, and risking the lives of my men, was all my doing. My brothers had nothing to do with this, they were only following orders. One's that I gave out. Sir."

Hearing the clone commander taking responsibility for the actions that he took, it only made the Jedi respect the kind of bond the clone army has made with one each other.

Obi-Wan spoke up, "You're not going to be executed captain," said the general, "We only wanted to hear what had happened while you were out there."

The clone sighed in relief, not realizing he was holding a breath in. After hearing the Jedi generals merely asking him to retell the events which took place over the last few days. Starting from the beginning, Iron talked about them meeting the villagers and seeing the state in which many of the settlements near them were in.

Images formed in the minds of the Jedi knights.

To hear this government left it's people to survive on their own, was cruel. Most worlds in the galaxy had the decency to care for it's people, even if they needed to make a choice between the Grand Republic or the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

A choice that needs to be made with the state of the galaxy.

Soon Obi-Wan told the clone commander the result of his men helping Koda Village, "With the people of the villages nearby having a better opinion of us is going to be helpful. Since rescuing those villagers, we've been getting reports of our scouts being welcomed by the natives," he said, "And now we're starting to build a picture of the kind of world this is."

Raiden informed the captain of their military status, "Now with the people having a good image of us, it will certainly make our lives easier when we move towards the capital city."

"How long until we can move on the moutain pass?" asked captain Iron.

The Mandalorian sighed, "From what we can gather from the locals, there appears to be a rather large town in the middle between this base and the moutains. While I prefer not to attack this town, we're going to have to do something about it in the end."

After entering this world and building up the base, the Senate was becoming more and more of a headache since the Jedi have yet to take action. Raiden just wanted the Senate to shut up and leave the combat side of things to the clones and Jedi knights.

"So for now, we're going to wait and send out recon teams to check out the town." Obi-Wan said.

Such little progress, thought Raiden.

There wasn't much they could do with the limited air assets they had with them. In total, there were enough gunships to transport a unit of six-hundred clones into the air. With the rest most likely going to have to travel via ground transport or foot, it was dangerous with the kind natural threats which came with this world.

With creatues like the Fire Dragon still out there, it made the Jedi knights a bit hesitant to use them until they could neturalize the monster from the equation.

"Alright captain, you can go," said Raiden until he remebered something, "However, as an unusual form of punishment... you and your men have to take care of the refugees until we can figure out what to do with them. That is all."

It may have not been the worst thing in the world, but it was going to be tedious work dealing with the locals.

As he made his way off the command platform and headed to where his men were, he heard someone call out to him, "Iron, hang on a second!"

Looking behind him, Iron saw commander Cody approaching him. The familiar yellow markings on his armor along with the visor let anyone know who it was. Wondering what Cody wanted, Iron walked up and placed his helmet on.

"Yeah, what is it Cody?" asked captain Iron.

The commander sighed, "You really caused me some trouble having to cover for the multiple times you were supposed to check in. Now you owe me a drink for pulling something that general Skywalker is known for."

"Alright I get it Cody," said Iron, "Don't need to remind me twice after what the generals told me."

The two clone commanders have been working together for years, it was during the invasion of Ryloth when they met. From there the two clones have fought next to each other in quite a few engagements and one of the biggest was the second invasion of Geonosis.

One, if not, the largest battle which the Republic has participated in. A costly victory for the Republic, one which costed thousands of clones and heavily injured many of the Jedi knights leading them.

While this world may not inflict anywhere near those number of deaths, there was going to be bloodshed. Regardless of it being clone trooper or the people of this land, people were going to die at the end of the day.

 **~o0o~**

 **Yural Mountain, Empire Territory**

 **Few Hours Later**

Deep within the moutains, traveling along a decrepit road, was a group of men. All of them were riding horses and armed with swords, shields, and other supplies needed for their profession. These men were bandits, roaming around the lands of the Empire and taking what they wanted from people.

A job which has been in full demand with the recent defeats the armies of the Empire and it's vassals have all suffered.

Now, there were thousands of bandits taking what they want from the people of villages, towns, and many other places. Spreading terror and mayhem wherever they go, almost like a plague which was now spreading like wildfire.

These men soon noticed a lonely traveler on the side of the moutain pass.

It was here these bandits got an idea. They saw how the man looked to be carrying things of value, and if it had value, then they wanted it for themselves.

As they approached the man, they didn't notice figures moving across the top of the moutains. The closer they approached the cloaked figure, the closer the figures on top of the moutains got to the group of bandits.

"You there! There's a fee for being on my land!"

The lead bandit called out to cloaked figure, wanting to make sure the man heard him.

Stopping where he was, the man with the cloak turned around and faced the bandits. With the darkness preventing the former soldiers from seeing what the man's face looked like, but the only thing they could see was a metal mouthguard.

Being in the moutains meant that there was little chance for anyone to hear them slaughter this man and take whatever valuables he possesses. Deciding to show why he was leading them, the leader of the criminals got off his horse and unsheated his sword.

"Hey! Didn't you hear what I say?" the leader yelled.

He began sauntering towards the cloaked man with his confidence bordering on the edge of being cocky. The man may have resorted to being a bandit, but that doesn't mean he was going to drop everything he learned over the course of career in the military.

And currently...

His battle instincts were on high alert when he was a few feet away the man in front of him. But he ignored them in favor of listening to what his desire craved for, and that was to become as rich and powerful as possible after what he witnessed.

Seeing his brother-in-arms being slaughtered as if they were livestock.

Ignoring those thoughts, the man walked until he was standing in front of the cloaked individual. It was here that he noticed something strange about him, he saw that his eyes were bright white and the mouth seemed to look more and more strange.

Looking almost like a small metal plate in a way.

The bandit noticed the hands, ones which didn't look anywhere remotely close to a human's, and there were only three apendages on them. Now everything made sense to him...

Fear took over in his mind and took notice of the figures surrounding them. As he started taking walking back to his men, the bandit saw his men were in a similar state as they witnessed these figures starting to climb down the moutain with unheard speed and agility and walked towards them.

It was almost sad really, the bandits were now facing an enemy unlike any they've seen before.

Once they came into the pale moon light, they saw that these beings weren't men. The group of beings did not even look organic since the bandits could notice the metal parts moving in perfect unison with one another.

A being made of metal approached them, wielding weapons similar to that of the enemy holding Alnus Hill.

Soon each metal being aimed their weapons at the bandits and within a moment, they pulled a button on them and bright crimson lights flew through the air and slaughtered the fearful bandits. However, one of the bandits seemed to have survived the attack.

It didn't take long for the metal beings to notice this and as they were ordered to bring back any individuals which may have a use for the general. As they began dragging the man away from the pile of dead bodies which were once his comrades, the leader soon saw a sight unlike any in his life once they climbed down the mountain.

From what he could see, there were thousands of metal beings marching from a gate deep within the mountain...

Just as he thought things couldn't get any worse, the fearful bandit saw someone approaching him. And due to the tight grip of these metal beings, he couldn't escape. Standing in front of him was a human, however this one was seemed to make his instincts go haywire.

Like... this man was far too dangerous to even exist.

"Good captain. I suggest we start probing that mind of his for information we need about this world." the man said to the metal being, making the bandit confused by what he was saying. It was like the man was speaking in another language.

Right before he was taken away, the sight of an army unlike any the bandit has seen before, was marching out of the gate by the tens of thousands. Now with two gates pouring armies of unbelievable power, war unlike any seen before was coming to this land...

That much the man was sure of.

It was time for this world to experience war between the droid army of the Confederacy and the clone army of the Grand Republic...

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 11: Introductions for All, Part 2**_

* * *

 **Welp, I said the story was going to change in a big way and something like bringing the Separatist into the mix is something different!**

 **Also... I'm sorry if I couldn't do the dragon fight well.**

 **So I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and I'll see ya guys next time when this story gets even deeper into what I have in store for it. Now that we have that taken care of... I really hope the Falcons beat the New England Patriots.**

 **That would be quite the game... but I digress.**

 **Hope you guys have a fantastic day!**


	11. Chapter 11

" _ **An alliance with a powerful person is never safe.**_ " - Phaedrus

* * *

 ** _Separatist Forces!_**

 _With the arrival of the dreaded enemy of the Grand Republic, the time has come for this new world to see the brand of warfare waged by the clone and droid armies of these two factions. As the Sith makes way for the capital city meanwhile Jedi knights Obi-Wan Kenobi and Raiden Dakkar begin to mass their troops for an attack on a critical mountain pass in the coming weeks._

 _War was coming to this world, a form unlike any the population has ever seen in the history of their world._

 _The time has come to see what both sides will do, but only time will tell what will happen!_

 **~o0o~**

 **Empire's Territory**

 **Few Days Later**

"Bullshit!"

"Exactly! How are we supposed to believe something as ridiculous as that!"

"I'm with them on this one."

Inside a bar, a few men finished hearing the tale the waitress had about the men in strange white and gray armor who managed to drive off the legendary Fire Dragon. A feat which has never been done since the early days of the legendary heroes who shaped their world.

Now they were expected to believe something as absurd as this, a few wondered if the woman was making this whole thing up for the sake of attention. As they were arguing with the woman about how legitimate her tale was, there were a group of armored warriors sitting near the corner of the bar.

A total of four people.

Two of them were young women while the others were older men. However, one of them was someone that no one dared to touch as they saw the familiar red hair and eyes of similar color. The young woman's name was Pina Co Lada, princess of the Empire.

Sitting next to her was a young girl who was a few years younger than her and looked to be in her teenage years. Brown hair and green eyes, features which were quite easy to pick out from a distance.

While the other two men looked to be experienced warriors, ones who have seen and shed blood in their lifetime.

"What do you think?" asked the younger girl, looking at the man with blonde hair.

An expression of disgust was on his face, "What do I think?" he asked, "The bar is filthy, the beer's nasty, and so is the food as well."

"Norma," the man next to him with the grey hair spoke up, "We're on a secret mission to Alnus Hill, and we're talking about the Fire Dragon as well as the rumors which have spread in recent days. I think you should be paying a bit more attention if you ask me."

Soon princess Pina entered the conversation, "You're being too loud." she said rather coldly.

Looking at her page, the princess urged the girl named Hamilton to continue on with what they've found out about this tale and whether or not the source was credible, "Within the last few days, there's been a rumor going on about these soldiers who wore this strange white and gray armor unlike anything we've seen and that their faces are covered. It was also said that while they were evacuating the villagers of Koda village while doing providing security of the sort, then they met the Fire Dragon."

The girl went through her memory of how the tale was told, "People saying that their metal monster was capable of launching the same kind of blue magic at the beast, inflicting pain on it. Even saying the soldiers were also riding similar metal creatures."

"The kind of weapons and magic these men possess it far too powerful for any one army to use. Killing them would be easier said than done." muttered the man with grey hair.

Pina glared at the older man, forcing him to be quiet and listen to Hamilton.

"Continue Hamilton." said Pina.

Nodding, the girl resumed telling the tale she's been hearing for the past few days, "It was said that they only had around a dozen or so men, a feat which no one has manage to do in recent generations."

Once finishing the tale, Hamilton seemed a bit nervous. Her fears weren't wrong, knowing that an army was capable of going toe-to-toe with the most dangerous beast their land has ever faced, and to hear a group of men managed to do this. Such a tale was more difficult to accept with knowing this fact.

A tale which many in the Empire's government hope to be false.

However, Norma was quick to discredit such a thing, "There all kinds of dragons, from ancient dragons to newborns, and winged dragons too, sir."

Soon another voice entered the conversation, "It was a real Fire Dragon, sir."

The woman, who talked about the tale, was now by their table and looked eager to share such an outlandish story. While the blonde knight still couldn't accept that a group of unknown soldiers from nowhere, were able to hold back such a creature while also taking no losses in the battle itself. Quite a feat it must have been, thought the man.

"You can't fool me!" Norma said.

It was here Hamilton wanted to see if they could gather any information on these soldiers, wondering if the waitress had a clue as to where their base of operations was.

"Do you know anything about these strange soldiers? About where they could possibly be? Or, anything that could prove useful?" asked the young girl. The woman didn't seem reluctant to share any information about the soldiers without some proper... motivation.

Taking out a gold coin, the girl was about to ask until the woman grabbed it and looked ecstatic.

"Thank you miss! Now, I'll tell you the tale of these soldiers." the woman said.

Meanwhile, the door to the bar opened and revealed a rather tall figure wearing a black robe, which also covered his face. The man went unnoticed by those inside the bar as they were all engrossed in their own conversations with one another. Approaching the counter, the man soon looked around for a moment until he heard something which caught his interest.

"They used weapons unlike anything I've seen before, iron rods which fired a blue magic to big wagons which had legs and seemed more like a monster than anything else. Even their armor seemed strange with the white and gray marks on them."

Looking in the direction of the voice, the man saw a waitress speaking with a group of individuals sitting at a table.

The man's mouthguard was hidden by the cloak he was wearing at the moment. As he approached the table, one of the two men noticed him approaching and seemed alarmed by such a thing. Realizing what could happen the man wearing the cloak placed his hand on a cylinder-shaped device on his hip.

' _Interesting... these people aren't as stupid as I thought they would be._ ' the man thought to himself.

Once he reached the table, the woman was currently in the middle of her tale until the man waved his hand in front of her face and spoke for the first time, "You will leave us alone and attend to the other tables in the bar."

Wondering what he was doing, the group reached for the handles of their weapons until they heard something strange. The woman soon spoke up, "I will leave you alone and attend to the other tables in the bar."

Everyone at the table was shocked to see the woman listen to his commands.

As the woman walked away, the man seemed to mutter something to himself until he faced the group of anxious warriors, staring at him. Using his abilities like that was to prove that he could do things these people could dream of.

Power which no one in this world had but him.

"Such weak minds the people of this world have," the man said, "Granted, I don't expect much from such a backwater world like this."

Taking a seat, the man didn't seem to care for the stares filled with anger. It was here the youngest member of the group soon jumped from her seat and approached the man wearing the robe, clearly intent on making him show respect for the princess.

"How dare you?! Do you know w-"

Until she felt an extreme amount of heat pressed against her neck.

Many of the occupants in the bar witnessed something terrifying as they saw the man wearing the cloak, who was currently wielding a crimson blade made of light. The young girl became paralyzed with fear the moment the blade was unleashed.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, little girl." the man whispered, loud enough for Hamilton to hear.

Pina felt pressed to do something about what might happen to her page. The princess soon saw the eyes of the man sitting before him, seeing the eyes of someone who didn't have a problem with killing Hamilton and could move on with their lives.

She knew this man was dangerous, showing an ability to make people do what he tells them to do and uses a blade similar to the ones who lead the strange soldiers in white and gray armor. Then a thought entered her mind, one which caused her to nearly panic.

' _I-Is this man... working with those soldiers? B-But... they never said a-anything about one using a red blade!_ '

While Pina tried to formulate words, the man spoke up and de-activated his blade, "It seems like I have your attention. Now... before we continue with this meeting, I need to know one thing before we start."

All of them nodded their heads as Hamilton soon hid behind Pina. None of them wanted to anger this warrior, especially after seeing the weapon he wields, and the kind of abilities he had only added to this.

"I just need to know if those descriptions of those soldiers who defeated the Fire Dragon... are reliable."

 **GATE: The Clone Wars**

 **Chapter 11: Introduction for All, Part 2**

Since the refugees arrival at the Republic base, life was normal for everyone involved, including the clone army. Many of the the residents of this world took a bit of time getting used to being around weapons and strange vehicles that couldn't be found anywhere else in their world.

After being told that the refugees were his responsibility, captain Iron and the rest of his team needed to care for these people. This kind of task wasn't in their job description by any stretch of the imagination.

However, the generals spoke and the captain would listen to what they ordered.

It was only natural as the Jedi knights were their leaders.

Currently, Iron was making his way back from a meeting with Cody and others, being told by the generals that in a few days time they would be moving out for the mountain pass, one which was critical to their attack on the capital city.

Before the attack on the mountain pass could even be attempted, since the enemy had two heavily fortified fortresses present in the mountain, they needed to capture a town, which stood about a dozen or so miles away from the roads, which were big enough for their tanks to use.

Once he made his way back to the barracks, where his men were currently resting, the captain soon felt the glow of the morning sun on his T-shaped visor.

' _Another morning on another world, doesn't change much does it?_ '

The last few years have been a living hell since the war between the Republic and the Confederacy started. Clones and droids slaughtered one another on different worlds across the galaxy. In the end, war never changes even if the people do.

Just as he caught sight of the buildings where his men were sleeping in, the clone commander soon caught sight of someone he didn't expect to be awake at this hour; Rory.

The girl seemed to be looking in the direction of the horizon, curious as to what she was doing up so early, the commander approached the girl. Being only a few steps away, the demigod turned her head and saw the clone approaching.

"Captain, why might you be up so early? Soldiers who performed as bravely as you did, should be considered heroes by your fellow brothers-in-arms." she asked as a smile graced her features.

He merely stood next to her, remaining silent as the golden rays of the sun bathed them in the familiar flow of the light.

Ever since taking in the girl, Iron and the rest of his men felt a bit on edge being around her, something which they've felt since meeting her. Spending so long on other worlds and encountering creatures of different races prepared them for anything.

Now...

This girl was something else. Wielding a weapon of that size and weight must take quite a bit out of her. Didn't change the fact that this girl was dangerous and one who should be put down without any hesitation whatsoever if it happened.

"My, my captain, are you alright?" asked the girl, a playful smile present on her face.

Iron raised an eyebrow underneath his helmet, " _Yes, I'm quite alright Rory. These next few days are going to be somewhat busy for most clones on the base._ "

"Busy? For what?"

He turned and looked at the girl, " _You know, you ask way too many questions miss._ "

Rory stood up and approached the soldier, "I would like it if you called me by my name captain." the girl said in a seductive voice. The clone picked up on this and merely ignored the tone behind her words.

Soon he felt her gaze on him, realizing that she wasn't going to stop, the captain sighed, " _Fine, I'll call you by your name Rory._ "

The girl smiled, knowing the man who stands before her, was someone who's seen death just about as much as her. No individual in their world is capable of hiding their killer instinct or blood lust from the god who rules these lands.

One who Rory listens to and respects.

Captain Iron realized he needed to get back to his men, " _Alright then, I'll be dismissing myself as I need to return to my men._ "

Just as he looked forward, Rory was already standing in front of him. Hiding his surprise under his helmet, the clone commander couldn't figure out how the girl manage to get in front of the clone trooper within the blink of an eye.

"May I come with you captain?"

" _I don't think you'd find the common day of a soldier interesting miss_ ," captain Iron said, " _We're clones_ , _we're not the most interesting beings where we're from. Far from it miss Rory. That much I can tell you._ "

All she did was smile.

Something told the captain that no matter what he said to her, there was no hope to dissuade her.

" _Fine_ , _you can come see_ ," Iron said, " _But just be careful because all of us view you differently._ " warned the captain.

He wanted her to realize that not all clones view the same issue as others did. The one thing they were allowed to do was think independently from one another, making them a far more effective fighting force compared to the droid army.

As they approached the temporary barracks, captain Iron clicked a button on a panel and the door opened in front of the pair. Walking inside, Rory looked around and saw the numerous beds and saw there were around a two dozen men inside. Seeing this many soldiers under the command of the captain was quite impressive, it let her know that this military must have effective leaders if they were allowed to command this many men.

Captain Iron placed his hands behind his back and stood straight, "Alright! Sun is up boys and it's a new day!"

His voice was full authority and command experience, Rory seeing that taking affect as every single soldier was out of their beds and were standing in a row. It amazed her how discipline these soldiers must be. To know that whenever they were given a command, they would listen without hesitation, something which made the priestess curious.

These soldiers were well-trained and well-equipped soldiers, one's who could take on a beast like a Fire Dragon, and it was made apparent in their battles with the Empire.

To make the powerhouse of this land crumble beneath their might, that was terrifying to any person, even Rory had to realize these soldiers couldn't be defeated by any known army in this land. A fact that she assumed the Empire wasn't going to take seriously, at first.

She soon watched the clones start putting on their armors, preparing their weapons, and preparing themselves for a day of training.

Once she saw the face of each soldier, Rory looked a bit confused seeing how each soldier resembled one another in quite a few ways. Most of them had the same kind of facial structure with the exact same eye color and the only differences between them were the hair of each one.

Looking in the direction of the captain, the girl was about to ask the captain the question on her mind until he answered it without even hearing.

"Miss Rory, like I said, we're clones. Meaning we're the exact same, no differences in our blood, mind, or body."

Hearing that answer, it made the priestess wonder even more about who these men were. Soldiers who were physically at a point that most soldiers of her world could never reach, add in the kind weapons they use, as well as their skills...

She saw how each one soldier regarded one another, by either a name or a number.

Then a few moments passed by, when they finished.

It took less than two minutes for the soldiers to be ready, all of them wearing the familiar gray and white armor, for whatever lies in front of them. As they walked out of the barracks, Rory walked alongside the captain as the men behind them walked in a pair of lines.

Just as she wondered where they were going, Iron put his fist up and the men stopped walking. Turning around, the captain started speaking.

"Boys, I know that most of us finished completing a mission and encountered some rather strange things, but we're going back in." captain Iron said, "And from the looks of it, we're going to start moving onto our target."

Many of the clones muttered to one another, Rory assuming it had something to do with whatever it was they were planning.

Then, a hand was seen being raised.

"Baxter, what is it?" asked the clone commander.

As he was called on, the clone spoke up, "Sir, um, who's the girl next to you?" asked the clone.

Captain Iron knew his men were going to start asking questions, "This is Rory Mercury," said Iron, "And in this world, she is a rather important figure since she is a priestess to one of the gods of this world. From what she's told us, she quite outlives just about anything we've seen... even general Yoda isn't as old as her."

Hearing such a claim was difficult to understand, a girl who wields a weapon of that size, was older than one of the Jedi knights residing on Coruscant.

It was quite difficult to believe such a thing, for most people, while for the clones, they realized after seeing so many different worlds across the galaxy, not everything is meets the eye. Rory saw none of the clones look surprise to hear such a thing.

"My, my captain... you should know a woman doesn't like it when her age is brought up."

" _Miss Rory_ , _I suggest we refrain from talk like that. Right now, I have training to do with my men,_ " said the captain rather coldly, " _I think you should help the others for the time being. Soldiers need to keep themselves ready for anything._ "

The priestess merely nodded her head, never letting the smile fall from her face. Just as the captain and two columns of clone troopers left, the priestess licked her lips, realizing the kind of confidence the man possess if he was willing to speak to her like that.

A man who Rory wanted.

It was that plain and simple. Soldiers like Iron were rare to find and to see an army as powerful as this one, the girl could only wonder what kind of enemy these men fight in their own world. One who must be capable of taking these men.

Deciding to find the others, Rory walked in the direction of the lodging prepared for the refugees. This was where the blue haired mage and elf were currently staying, like the rest of the refugees, ones who couldn't survive on their own.

' _This captain is far more interesting than I could have imagined._ ' thought Rory.

With that thought in mind, she soon found the shelter which the clones provided them with. The rooms inside the building were nothing special, quite basic in fact, with two beds and a light for each room. Implying that these rooms were made with the clone troopers in mind.

"Now where did the children go?" asked Rory.

 **~o0o~**

 **Republic Base, Alnus Hill**

 **Couple Days Later**

"The plan is we're going to have to send two AT-TEs to Italica and make contact with the people there. It's the only way to make sure we have enough firepower to show people that we're not easy targets."

At this moment, Obi-Wan and Raiden were currently going over plans for their attack on the mountain pass.

However, both Jedi knights needed to take care of the town of Italica. It was an important town from what the map could tell them, especially seeing two major roads entering the town. Taking this into account, they needed to make sure not to scare the locals.

"But Raiden," sighed Obi-Wan, "That would only further scare off the locals. Seeing what they call the tanks, we shouldn't bring such heavy amounts of firepower. I believe we should travel with a few speeders and make contact with them peacefully at first."

As for the strategy they were going to use, it was still a work-in-progress.

"Fine, we'll try your way and since you came up with the plan, you have to go Obi-Wan. I mean, it's only natural that you follow through with it." Raiden said.

Shaking his head, Obi-Wan sometimes wondered why he got stuck working with people like Raiden and Anakin at times. They never listened to orders and did things on their own terms, even when it comes to military operations.

However...

Knowing Raiden the way he did, Obi-Wan feared what his former padawan was going to do, "Raiden, I fear you're still going to bring in the tanks and keep them a distance away."

The Jedi knight merely raised his hands, "Hey, we're still using your plan, aren't we?"

Obi-Wan sighed at hearing that. His former padawan certainly was a military commander, one who truly knew what he was doing at times. It wasn't hard to see why his legion was considered as powerful as it was.

Just as they were going to continue on with the planning, the Jedi knights saw commander Cody and captain Irons approaching the command center. Once they stepped onto the platform, the clones saluted the Jedi knights.

"At ease," Raiden said, "What seems to be the problem?"

The captain was the first to speak, "It appears that some of the refugees are looking to provide for themselves."

Curious as to what the captain was speaking about, Obi-Wan urged the clone to go on, "From what Rory told us, the scales on the dragons that the Empire's soldiers used, are quite valuable and after we told them that we have no use for such materials, they told us about trading in such material at the trading hub not far from here."

"And what is the name of this trading hub?" asked Raiden.

Commander Cody spoke up, "They said it was called Italica, sir."

Both Jedi knights looked at each other with a small smirk on their face. Once seeing those smirks, both clone commanders had an idea as to what might happen now. Raiden walked over to one of the clone operating the terminals.

"Trooper, I need you to tell some tank crews to get ready." ordered Raiden.

The clone nodded, "How many crews sir?"

Raiden looked at Obi-Wan and turned to face the clone once more, "We're going to need two tank crews from the 32nd tank divison to get ready, and make sure to tell the commander to send his best men for this mission to Italica."

Once he finished telling the clone the information, Raiden walked back over to where Obi-Wan and the clones were.

Raiden started speaking, "Well Iron, looks like you're going back out there already. This time, Obi-Wan will be going with you along commander Wittmann." Raiden informed the clones of what was going on.

"So I guess I should tell the girls to get ready then." captain Iron guessed.

Both Jedi knights nodded.

Captain Iron and commander Cody walked off the command platform and started heading to where the girls were. The clones realized that their job in this world was going to be a long, grueling process and this was only the beginning of it.

Now, they only needed to make sure that nothing goes wrong.

Something they couldn't guarantee for sure, but they were going to have to try in the end.

 **~o0o~**

 **Empire's Territory, Temple Of Eeyar**

 **Hours Later**

Pina and her knights still couldn't believe what happened.

After they finished up their conversation with the mysterious warrior, it was apparent he knew something about these soldiers wearing the gray and white armor. No matter how much they tried, they couldn't get a single word out of him about it.

Granted, none of them were in the spirit of dying after seeing the blade he wields.

Just as they approached a temple, one where Pina was told held someone of great importance, she told the warrior about it and he agreed to coming with them. He told them that he was going to show them that he holds an army which was capable of standing on even ground with the strange soldiers.

Even boasting that his forces could best them.

Though it felt like he could back up his words. However, the man never mentioned much information when it came to what his forces were. If his strange vehicle was anything to go by, one which looked to be a stick-like shape, and the strange bodyguards of his.

Beings who the knights couldn't identify as they wore strange white cloaks, armed with a spear-like weapon that none of the knights have ever seen, not even Gray in all his years has seen such a weapon. The only noticeable feature were the crimson glowing eyes.

Such eyes which frightened Hamilton and unnerved princess Pina to some degree.

After a few minutes of silence, the group reached a temple of sort.

One where the princess was hoping to find information when it came to what was going on Alnus Hill. It was their only hope to find out what's been happening, there was never any news on what happened to the Allied Armies.

Something which was a cause for concern.

Once reaching the temple, Pina got off her horse while the mysterious warrior got off his own vehicle. Then, he spoke to his guards in some kind of langauge the knights couldn't understand at all. Making them anxious as to what he told them.

"My lady, shouldn't we hurry in order to reach Alnus Hill?" asked Hamilton.

"I agree with miss Hamilton on this princess," interjected Grey, "With what's been happening in the Empire in the last few days, I fear speed is our ally in these dire times."

After learning that some senators within the Senate were being assassinated, it made the princess feel distrust amongst one another in the Empire. She wanted to save her nation, not watch it fall into chaos because of this mysterious army.

Now...

Here was someone proclaiming to have an army that could stand up to the might of the enemy occupying Alnus Hill.

As Pina and the warrior walked through the temple with a member of the temple guiding them to the top of the tower. Once reaching the top floor, it was here Pina saw a man lying in bed with severe wounds.

It took no less than a second for the princess to realize who it was; king Duran.

The same king who lead the Allied Armies into battle against the enemy on the hill. To see a man of such stature being reduced into what he was now, impossible. He was laying in bed as bandages covered the wounds which were once his arm and leg.

Even losing an eye.

However, the mysterious warrior shared none of the same sympathy for the king. After seeing so many worlds fall, this man was different than those of the galaxy. Men who were dealing with an enemy unlike any they've faced.

Now he was facing the ultimate consequence.

"King Duran!? What happened to you?" asked Pina, approaching the wounded king.

The man didn't say anything at first until his eyebrow scrunched up in thought, "Wait," he said, "Could it be possible that you and others don't know what happened at Alnus Hill? Such a thing is possible with that snake of an emperor."

Pina wondered what could've happened to make the once proud king to look as depressing and lifeless as he did right now.

"What happened at Alnus Hill?" the princess asked, needing any kind of information on what she could possibly face.

"Our armies fought very hard, even if so many were dying at the hands of the enemy. It was chaos my men was dying left and right of me, a sight I haven't seen in years," the man sighed, "Now, I'm most likely going to die a slow and painful death."

It was here Pina pressured him into telling her something.

"King Duran! Please, I beg of you to tell me anything about Alnus Hill. Anything which could be of some use to my knights."

The man refused, "If you want to know anything about the dreaded hill, then I suggest you go there yourself and understand what my men had to experience that night. I realized that night what truly happened."

" _And what would that be king?_ "

Both Pina and king Duran looked to see the man removing the cloak, letting his face be visible. His pale gray hair and cold, calculating eyes focused on the king, but it was the mouthguard which shocked them the most.

It was apparent that he needed it to survive, if the brutal scars on the side of his face were anything to go by.

"W-Who are you?" asked king Duran.

The man merely chuckled, " _Pardon me, my name is Shoijoin and I am Sith, a powerful warrior with abilities unlike any you could dream of. One who needs to know what happened on the hill, and to confirm about who may be the leader of that army occupying the hill._ "

As the Sith finished speaking, the king gritted his teeth, "If you want to know who our true enemy is, then it was never to our front," said Duran, "But, our true enemy was always behind us. Lurking in the shadows for ages, and now we see their true colors."

Pina couldn't understand why the king thought such a thing.

"Please tell me about Alnus Hill, about the Empire!" begged Pina.

Then Pina heard the familiar sound of a blade igniting. Looking in the direction of the Sith, she saw the crimson glow of his blade.

" _You know princess, there are always more than one way for us Sith to obtain the information we need. Now, if you truly don't want to see my work then I suggest you wait downstairs... I need some information of my own from this king._ "

As she looked into the man's eye, Pina realized how deranged this man was.

However...

Fear took control of her and made her walk out of the room, not her own will, but the fear of being in the same room with that monster. But, it was a monster which could help the Empire survive against the enemy on Alnus Hill...

Now, she needed to wait.

And soon screams of pain came from the tower...

 _ **NEXT ON GATE: THE CLONE WARS**_

 _ **CHAPTER 12: Struggle for Italica, Part 1**_

* * *

 **Another chapter done, and the plot continues to move onward with the Sith teaming up with the Empire!**

 **I told you that this series was going to change in a big way, and this is only the beginning of them. Now we'll see plenty of action in this world while still advancing the plot of GATE and Star Wars: Episode 3.**

 **Until next time guys, I'll see ya later!**


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